VIDEO: Tips for working with Kybella

CHICAGO — In this video perspective from the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery annual meeting, Kimberly J. Butterwick, MD, discusses techniques and tips for using Kybella as treatment for submental fat.

“We’re learning that we might want to space the treatments a little bit,” Butterwick, a dermatologist practicing in San Diego, Calif., and blogger for Healio.com focusing on aesthetic dermatology, told Healio.com, regarding Kybella (deoxycholic acid, Allergan), which was approved by the FDA earlier this year.

Rather than injecting once a month, which was initially advised, Butterwick has found that injecting every 6 to 8 weeks can alleviate swelling between treatments. She reports seeing a “good response,” from patients after two treatments.

To manage swelling, dermatologists at the meeting discussed using ice, and warning patients that they may experience swelling, especially after the first injection. Butterwick reports using a lidocaine injectable on a patient before a Kybella treatment, while other dermatologists reported offering Marcaine (bupivacaine) when treating patients.

“I think this is an exciting treatment that appeals to both my female [patients] and now male patients,” Butterwick said.