Chin lipo disappointing results - any suggestions? (Photo)

Thank you for sharing your experience, and I completely understand your frustration, especially when you've invested time, money, and trust into a procedure that didn’t meet your expectations.

At 5 months post-op, most swelling should have resolved, and you should have started seeing more definitive results. If you're experiencing persistent fullness that's soft and non-tender, several factors could be contributing—such as residual fat, poor skin retraction, or even post-surgical fluid retention (like mild seroma or fibrosis). While your platysma may be intact and your weight stable, soft tissue behavior after liposuction can be unpredictable.

Here are a few suggestions to consider:

Ultrasound or RF Skin Tightening (e.g., Ultherapy, Morpheus8, or RF microneedling) – These treatments can stimulate collagen remodeling and skin contraction, especially helpful if your skin didn’t retract as expected.

Kybella (Deoxycholic Acid) – This injectable can further target small fat pockets and may be ideal for refining stubborn areas left behind after lipo. It’s minimally invasive and often used as a touch-up post-liposuction.

Submental Renuvion or AccuTite – These minimally invasive energy-based tightening treatments can be more effective than non-invasive options for significant skin laxity.

Lymphatic Drainage or Massage Therapy – If you're dealing with post-operative fibrosis or residual swelling, specialized massage can sometimes help improve contour and soften tissues.

While your surgeon feels revision wouldn't help, seeking a second opinion from a provider experienced in revision body contouring or energy-based skin tightening may give you more clarity and options.

Thank you for your inquiry and for sharing your photographs. My impression is that the perceived increase in fullness may actually be due to a slight contour irregularity, resulting from the reduction of some superficial fatty tissue while the deeper layer of digastric muscles and deeper-seated fatty tissue persists.

In general, this can be effectively addressed with an anterior neck lift. This technique is a variation of a deep plane neck lift, focusing on reducing excess volume in the deeper layers without tightening the skin. It specifically targets hereditary volume excess in the area, as well as any disproportionate deposits of superficial fatty tissue under the skin, which can create a more unsightly appearance.

It is important to note that this procedure does leave a scar under the chin, typically measuring around 3 cm in length.

Based on your single before and after photos, I can see your concern. If somebody has heavy skin, it is conceivable to perform neck liposuction and to have results that do not meet somebody's expectations. You may be able to gain Clarity by visiting another reputable facial plastic surgeon for a second opinion.

You may think it’s only the chin and neck that matters but it’s a bit more complicated than that. That is why the procedure didn’t deliver.
To start with we need to see a bit more of your face.
100% of people who seek chin and neck liposuction have an underdeveloped mandible.
The problem was never related to fat distribution, but instead based on facial skeletal structure, which is the primary underlying fundamental reason each of us have our unique facial features.The lack of projection of the mandible is the reason that people get a double chin.
Obviously, it can get a bit worse if the person is overweight.
In order for us to make an assessment, we need to see the relationship between the mandible and the maxilla
This is why we need to see full face pictures or at least up to about your ears.
Well done, Liposuction can give some improvements, especially if done well on individuals who have a substantial amount of fat to remove.
Delivering consistent quality liposuction results is more difficult than most people realize.
The number of plastic surgeons who approach mastery of this kind of work it’s also quite small.
If you take all these variables into consideration that it’s no wonder that this procedure has a pretty low overall patient satisfaction.
Being skilled at Liposuction not only includes the technical aspects, but also the ability to make accurate assessments and deliver predictable outcomes.
A patient who may not be an ideal candidate for the procedure should be told this during the consultation and the provider should show before, and after pictures that are appropriate for that person candidacy.
Liposuction should be predictable for too many plastic surgeons. They are not.
They think they’ll get a result but when they don’t they ask themselves why didn’t it work? It didn’t work because the problem was never related to fat distribution.
I’m sorry your results didn’t turn out the way you had hoped , finding the right provider and extend finding the right procedure may be challenging.
You can’t really grow a bigger mandible.
Individuals who have a small mandible typically have an overbite dental occlusion.
on the profile pictures, the upper lip will project further than the lower lip.
As a general statement, I recommend patients have multiple in person consultations before selecting a provider.
I know this is time-consuming and most people just want to get the procedure done assuming that board certification means competence.
being certified and having mastered Liposuction have very little to do with each other.
During each consultation to open up their portfolio and show you their entire collection of the before, and after pictures of the previous patients who had similar facial characteristics to your own.
Bring A proper set of facial pictures of yourself to use as reference during the consultation guide.
This is particularly important when reviewing before, and after pictures.
Showing pictures of other patients who were better candidates for the procedure isn’t going to help you understand what your results are likely to look like or how much experience the provider has.
Haily experience providers should have access to more before and after pictures then you have time to look at during the consultation.
I wish you had come was better and it’s always upsetting with one patient and left frustrated.
I’m not sure doing the procedure again is going to give you anything better.
Secondary Liposuction usually delivers less than the first and it sounds like the first didn’t make things better at all.
best,
Mats Hagstrom MD