New procedure eliminates double chin fat without surgery

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Looking to get rid of double or triple chins? The FDA has recently approved a procedure that tackles the problem without requiring surgery.

It's that little pouch of fat right below the chin that extends into the neck, and Patricia Felizola sees it especially when she Facetimes.

"I don't know that you'd call it a double chin, but there's enough there that that I see it," she said.

But instead of surgery or liposuction, Felizola is opting for something less invasive. Dr. Joseph Eviatar is a plastic surgeon and one of the first in New York to use Kybella, a brand new injectable made of deoxycholic acid.

"The product itself is going to selectively melt the fat cells," he said.

Patricia's chin is marked for precision accuracy, and the area is first numbed. Then, each dot gets a tiny injection of Kybella. Over the course of a month, the fat melts away and is discarded by the body.

Meanwhile, the inflammation that's caused helps to produce collagen, which tightens and firms the area so there's no hanging skin. Patients usually require two to three treatments spread out over as many months.

"Theoretically, we can use it all over the body," Dr. Eviatar said. "As long as we know the anatomy, we know where the nerves are, we know where the muscles are. You have to target it specifically to the fat, but any area of fat, theoretically you can use it."

But it would cost a lot to use it in large, fatty areas like the thighs or belly. The chin area alone costs between $1,000 and $2,000.

Patients will feel like they have a sore throat for a day or so, but otherwise, there's no downtime. And that is why Dr. Eviatar expects lots of patients to want Kybella.

"Now, just like they're having Botox, they can have Kybella," he said. "That's what's game changing about it."

And Patricia can't wait to comfortably Facetime.