Sometimes no matter how much you exercise or how well you control your diet, you find yourself faced with areas of fat in unexpected places. Getting rid of those areas of fat can be challenging, to say the least—leading many patients to seek out cosmetic and surgical procedures that can help. For a long while, patients and doctors alike have been seeking an easy-to-administer injectable that can help patients remove unwanted areas of fat without surgery or discomfort. That injectable has finally arrived, and it is known as Kybella. Approved by the FDA to help patients mitigate unwanted chin fat, Kybella is now available in the Twin Cities to patients at the Minneapolis Anti-Aging and Skin Clinic.

Kybella has been approved by the FDA to diminish so-called double-chin fat. Medically known as “submental fat,” this is the excess fat that collects around the jawline. Many patients are otherwise in excellent physical conditions, but due to one factor or another, cannot eliminate this area of fat. Other patients are content with their body and lifestyle but bothered by this single area of fat. Kybella now offers a wide variety of patients a way to treat that double chin with just a few simple injections.

There was a time when patients who wanted body contouring had only one real option for achieving results: liposuction. As a surgical procedure, liposuction is an excellent way to remove stubborn areas of fat that don’t respond to diet or exercise—no matter how hard the patient tries. But liposuction is not a good fit for all patients.

Kybella is as an alternative for patients who are not good candidates for surgery or for patients who simply want to avoid surgery. It’s true that liposuction around the submental area can be an effective way to remove fat. But liposuction requires a substantial recovery period afterwards.

For patients who want to reduce that area of fat, but who do not want to undergo the expense and discomfort of a surgical procedure, Kybella is a sensible alternative that many want to try first. This is also true for our Twin Cities Kybella patients who, for a wide variety of reasons, may not be suitable candidates for surgery.

Liposuction is not the only body contouring procedure that is being challenged by Kybella. Other procedures that are being replaced or challenged by Kybella include:

• Coolsculpting
• Liposculpting
• Vanquish
• Zerona

It should be noted that Kybella is specifically formulated (and approved) only for use around the chin to treat submental fullness.

In some ways, Kybella seems too good to be true. We don’t blame you if you have a hard time believing that an injection of something will actually cause you to mitigate fat. But the beauty of Kybella is that it takes advantage of processes that are already happening within your body, amplifying those processes in a targeted and controlled way to help get your desired results.

There is a naturally occurring molecule in your body called deoxycholic acid that helps you break down fat. Kybella is composed of a synthetic form deoxycholic acid—which is just a technical way of saying that Kybella is identical to the deoxycholic acid in your body, it’s simply created in a lab. But because it’s chemically identical to something already in your body naturally, the chances of an allergic reaction to Kyeblla are quite low.

Once the deoxycholic acid is injected, it begins to break down the walls of the fat cells in the submental area begin to break down—making it appear as though fat in the double-chin area “melts” over time. It can take 6-8 weeks for this process to occur, but the results tend to be effectively permanent.

Because Kybella is both relatively novel and can be transformational, many patients have questions about the procedure. Below are some of the most commonly asked questions regarding Kybella.

How Many Treatments Will I Need?

Most patients will require more than one treatment in order to receive the best possible results. For most patients, this means somewhere between 2-3 treatments. These treatments will be spaced about two months apart from each other.

How Does Kybella Work?

An injectable that destroys fat might seem like magic, but Kybella is actually derived from a synthetic version of molecules already found in your body. These molecules, called deoxycholic acid, is used to break down fat. Kybella does the same thing, destroying fat cells in the targeted area permanently.

How Long Will My Results Last?

Results from Kybella treatments are effectively permanent. The deoxycholic acid introduced into the submental region of your jawline effectively destroys fat cells—and makes it difficult for them to form again.

What is Kybella Approved to Treat?

Kybella is currently approved by the FDA to treat excessive submental fat around the jawline.

What Can I Expect During Recovery?

In most cases, recovery from Kybella involves resuming your normal and daily activities.

When Should I Expect Results?

Most patients will start seeing results after several months. Peak results will manifest around six to eight weeks following your last Kybella injection.

Individual results may vary.