COMING

OZEMPIC FACES

Everyone is taking Ozempic/Wegovy (semaglutide, Novo Nordisk) or Mounjaro (tirzepatide, Lilly) for weight loss–many of whom may need to lose weight, rein in their diabetes, or both.

First approved to treat diabetes under the brand name Ozempic, semaglutide received the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s nod as a weight-loss medication in June 2021 with the brand name Wegovy. Mounjaro (tirzepatide) was fast-tracked for weight loss by the FDA in October 2022 and may be approved sometime this year. These are injectable medications known as glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists. Tirzepatide also contains a glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptor agonist in addition to a GLP-1 receptor agonist. These new anti-obesity medications promise to help people lose 15% to 20% of their body weight.

And they work so well that many folks are reporting a side effect that’s been dubbed “Ozempic face” by the media. Ozempic face is characterized by sagging skin, sunken cheeks, and an overall gaunt look.

Of course, such facial wasting following massive weight loss is not new. The questions are: Should we treat Ozempic face, and if so, with what, and what happens if a patient regains weight?

There are likely no one-size-fits-all answers here. Some of my colleagues are opting to use soft tissue fillers or fat to add volume back to the mid-face. Others may opt for energy-based devices to stimulate collagen underneath the skin’s surface or build muscle. And some are suggesting facelifts or other surgical procedures to help reverse the holistic signs of aging.

My take? If you are overweight or obese and have any of the comorbidities associated with your body mass index (BMI), stay the course. Continue taking Ozempic until you are at your goal weight and once you have shown that you can maintain it, consider talking to a plastic surgeon or dermatologist about any aspect of your appearance that you are unhappy with.

GOING

PILLOWY FACES

From stacking black rubber bracelets and sporting crop tops to cone bras and fishnet stockings, Madonna has always been a trendsetter.

Usually, fans are quick to jump on the Material Girl’s bandwagon, but not this time. Fans uttered a collective “yikes” after seeing the pop icon’s puffy face at the 2023 Grammy awards.

(Madonna said her face was swollen from surgery, but many speculated that she had gone a bit too heavy on fillers.)

Many celebrities, most recently, Blac Chyna (who has reclaimed her birth name, Angela White) have had their filler dissolved with hyaluronidase and others have bowed out of the filler game altogether. Some people are even going the other way and asking about buccal fat removal to get that sucked-in contoured look.

My take? Less has always been more when it comes to filler, and it still is. Now that we have a whole new crop of site-specific fillers such as Juvéderm’s Volux for jawline definition and Juvéderm’s Voluma for cheeks as well as fillers like Restylane Contour which move with natural facial expressions, it will likely just be a matter of making smarter choices about what areas to fill, how much filler to use, and which fillers are best. This personalized approach is best left to skilled injectors who have experience with multiple fillers and understand facial anatomy.