Whereas working on Ozempic sufferers, Dr. Few began to note a development: The pores and skin high quality of somebody on a GLP-1 was reminding him of an “previous, overused rubber band.” Mark Mofid, MD, a board-certified facial plastic surgeon in San Diego and La Jolla, makes the same comparability—it’s just like the elastic waistband on a pair of underwear that has stretched out over time.
Dr. Diamond, who focuses on facelift surgical procedures, has seen the SMAS layer is “undoubtedly thinner and weaker” on individuals who have been utilizing GLP-1s for weight reduction. (SMAS is an acronym for subcutaneous musculoaponeurotic system, a layer of connective tissues that helps the face.) Normally, the SMAS thins naturally as you become older, which might contribute to facial getting older, like sagging across the cheeks, in line with a research printed in Aesthetic Surgical procedure Journal Open Discussion board. And if an Ozempic affected person has plans to grow to be a facelift affected person, it’s price noting that the SMAS layer can also be important for natural-looking outcomes. “The success of the facelift is absolutely primarily based on the power of the muscle layer,” says Dr. Diamond. “You’re not pulling out the pores and skin and utilizing that to get the elevate. The muscle layer being skinny can undoubtedly have an effect on facelift outcomes.”
Dr. Few estimates that about 25 to 30 p.c of his sufferers are presently taking a GLP-1, and finds that their pores and skin “doesn’t maintain its elastic recoil the best way it did.” Primarily based on his expertise, utilizing a GLP-1 “nearly appears to age the standard of the pores and skin, just like the pores and skin takes on an look of an older particular person.” He’s seen the pores and skin look extra worn and lose its capability to retain its form across the constructions of the face, which could result in sagging across the jawline, for instance. These are modifications he hasn’t seen in sufferers who’ve misplaced vital weight in different methods—like by weight loss program or gastric bypass surgical procedure—which makes him assume it’s distinctive to GLP-1 utilization.
We requested Novo Nordisk, the makers of Ozempic and Wegovy, about what some plastic surgeons are noticing, and so they despatched the next remark: “At Novo Nordisk, affected person security is a high precedence. We work carefully with the U.S. Meals and Drug Administration to repeatedly monitor the protection profile of our medicines. We’re not conscious of any research wanting on the impact of semaglutide particularly on facial fats. We advocate that any sufferers experiencing unwanted side effects whereas taking Wegovy or Ozempic contact their healthcare supplier.” Novo Nordisk additionally famous that, “though Wegovy and Ozempic each include semaglutide, they’re completely different merchandise with completely different indications, dosages, prescribing info, titration schedules, and supply kinds. The merchandise are usually not interchangeable and shouldn’t be used exterior of their accepted indications. Novo Nordisk is dedicated to the accountable use of our medicines. We’re taking a number of steps to make sure accountable use of our semaglutide medicines that are detailed on semaglutide.com.” These accepted indications, they continued, are as follows: “Wegovy 2.4 mg is FDA accepted together with a diminished calorie weight loss program and elevated bodily exercise to cut back the chance of main cardiovascular occasions corresponding to dying, coronary heart assault, and stroke in adults with recognized coronary heart illness and both weight problems or obese; and to assist adults and kids aged ≥ 12 years with weight problems, or some adults with obese with weight-related medical issues, lose extra physique weight and preserve it off. Ozempic is FDA-approved for the therapy of kind 2 diabetes, to enhance blood sugar, together with weight loss program and train, and scale back the chance of main cardiovascular occasions corresponding to coronary heart assault, stroke, or dying in adults with kind 2 diabetes and recognized coronary heart illness. Ozempic is just not accepted for power weight administration.”
The place they’re seeing it
You’ve in all probability heard about “Ozempic face,” a time period for the sunken look that may outcome from speedy weight reduction. In her observe, Umbareen Mahmood, a board-certified plastic surgeon in New York Metropolis, has seen “accelerated getting older within the face” of sufferers who’ve misplaced a substantial quantity of weight on a GLP-1, noting “elevated high-quality traces, jowling, periorbital hollowness, and crepiness of the pores and skin.” However pores and skin modifications are additionally displaying up on arms, legs, and stomachs. Dr. Mahmood has seen “marked elevated laxity within the tissue of the breasts, stomach, arms, and medial thighs [the part of the thigh that includes the hips]” on sufferers who’ve taken a GLP-1 to reduce weight. In response, Dr. Mahmood has turned to instruments like Galaflex mesh assist, which is sometimes called an “inner bra,” when doing a breast elevate or elevate with implants. “The pores and skin elasticity is weakened and wishes further assist to carry up an implant or preserve a brand new form by itself,” she says.