The future might hold a non-surgical cosmetic procedure to rid us of the dreaded double chin. Pharmaceutical company Bayer has launched tests into an injectable drug to combat the fat deposits that lead to a double chin.
In a statement, Bayer said that it’s conducting clinical trials into ATX-101, an injectable drug “for the reduction of localized fat under the chin (submental fat).”
“There is a huge demand for a safe, effective and approved injectable treatment for localized fat reduction,” said Jean-Paul Ortonne, a French dermatologist involved in the trials.
The clinical trial will include about 720 people from Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, Spain and Italy with a goal of launching a product in Europe, Asia and South America in 2014.
How does the procedure work? Yvonne Moeller, a Bayer spokeswoman, compared it to “something like a tattoo.” Between 40 and 70 tiny injections are administered into the fat cells over several sessions, with the amount depending on the size of the double chin and the person, she said.
Patients should start to see noticeable results after about 16 weeks, she said.
Early tests are said to have found the drug “safe and tolerable.”
The U.S. is not mentioned in their current trials, but if it proves to be a safe and effective procedure, ATX-101 may eventually be tested for use in the States.
In the meantime, some surgical options do exist that may help with the reduction of a double chin, such as liposuction, chin surgery or a neck lift.
Tags: double chin reduction
This entry was posted on Saturday, January 15th, 2011 at 7:27 pm and is filed under Facial Plastic Surgery, In The News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
