Double chin reduction before and after photos

Before and after photographs help show what double chin reduction changes. The submental area is unusually easy to misrepresent in a photograph, so it is worth knowing what to look for.

Photographs are shown and discussed at consultation, where your practitioner can select cases relevant to your anatomy.

The standards these photos must meet

Before and after images used by registered health practitioners in Australia are governed by the Medical Board of Australia's Guidelines for advertising regulated health services.

Images must be genuine - real patients, real results. Manufacturer stock images, illustrations, or photographs of people who were not treated at the clinic are not before and after images and must not be presented as such.
Photographs on this website have been retouched only to protect patient privacy, never to enhance or alter the results of treatment.
Images must carry a clear and prominent disclaimer that results may vary between individuals.
Patients must consent to the use of their images.

Results may vary between individuals. A photograph records one person's outcome, not a prediction of yours.

Head position is everything here

The submental area changes shape dramatically with head position. Tilting the chin up stretches and flattens it; tilting it down creates fullness in almost anyone. A photograph taken chin-down before and chin-up after shows a transformation that has nothing to do with treatment.

So the first thing to check is that both frames show the same head position and the same camera height. Profile and three-quarter views are the informative ones. A straight-on frontal view shows very little of the area.

Also check that the jaw is in the same position in both - clenching or protruding the jaw changes the contour.

Other things worth checking

Lighting. Light from above creates shadow under the chin and exaggerates fullness. Flat or upward light hides it.
Time elapsed. The injectable treatment works over weeks, and swelling in the first days after each session temporarily makes the area look worse, not better. A meaningful comparison is taken well after the course is complete.
How many sessions. The result shown may represent one session or six. Ask.
Weight change. Where the patient also lost weight between the two photographs, the change is not attributable to the treatment.
Which treatment. Injectable fat dissolving, liposuction and a neck lift produce different degrees of change. A liposuction result is not a guide to what injectables will do.

Why your result will differ

Outcomes vary with how much submental fat is present, skin quality and elasticity, jaw and chin bone structure, the position of the hyoid bone in the neck, age, and how many sessions are completed.

Bone structure matters more than most people expect. A receded chin or a low-set hyoid bone produces a less defined neck angle regardless of how much fat is removed, and no fat treatment changes that. Where this is the case, an honest assessment will say so - and may suggest that chin augmentation, rather than fat reduction, is the relevant conversation.

What the photographs do not show

Skin. Where someone has loose skin with relatively little fat, removing the fat can make the looseness more apparent. Gallery cases are generally selected for good skin quality.
The swelling. Several days of pronounced swelling after each session is part of the experience and does not appear in a gallery.
Side effects. Numbness, firmness, bruising, and less common complications such as marginal mandibular nerve injury causing an uneven smile.
Durability. Fat cells destroyed do not return, but remaining cells enlarge with weight gain. A photograph is a moment, not a guarantee.

Costs

Double chin treatment starts from $3,500 for the non-surgical option; double chin liposuction is around $5,000. As at September 2024 and including GST, a consultation with a Cosmetic Doctor is $150.

Risks

For fat-dissolving injections these include swelling, bruising, pain, numbness, redness and firmness at injection sites; injury to the marginal mandibular nerve causing an uneven smile or facial weakness; difficulty swallowing; injection site ulceration or tissue damage; hair loss at the injection site; infection; asymmetry; and little or no response. The full list is on the double chin reduction page.

Individual results may vary. Any surgical or invasive procedure carries risks. Before proceeding you should seek a second opinion from an appropriately qualified health practitioner.

See double chin reduction, double chin liposuction, neck lift, or all face procedures.