By Mansur Shaheen Deputy Health Editor of Dailymail.Com
Updated: 18.15 06 March 2023
One of New York City’s leading plastic surgeons has revealed to DailyMail.com which surgeries clients are most looking for in 2023.
Dr. Barry Weintraub, who owns a practice in Manhattan, said one of the year’s breakout stars so far has been buccal fat removal surgery.
The procedure – which Chrissy Teigen has openly admitted to having – involves removing fat from the face to highlight the bone structure, particularly the cheekbones and the hollowed out areas between the cheeks and jaw.
But Dr. Weintraub said an anti-aging procedure involving radio waves has also begun to take off in recent months, along with chin implants.
And a celeb favorite operation is still very popular.
Removal of buccal fat
Popularized by celebrities like Chrissy Teigen – and rumored to be behind the jaws of Lea Michelle and Sophie Turner – buccal fat surgery is all the rage this winter.
The surgery removes buccal fat pads from the inside of the mouth. Dr. Weintraub says these pads serve as buffers between the teeth while chewing sometimes, but they’re not absolutely necessary.
A surgeon will scoop what Dr. Weintraub describes as a ‘spoonful’ of fat from a patient’s cheek, taking some of the ‘breath’ out of their cheeks.
He likens the effect it has on a person’s face to making it look like they’re smoking a cigarette – but permanently. He said it’s a ‘desirable’ angularity.
It is a purely cosmetic, permanent procedure.
Dr. Weintraub, who performs two of the procedures each week at his Manhattan practice, performs an incision from the inside of a patient’s mouth.
About 75 percent of the procedures are performed on women. A surgery will usually cost between $9,500 and $12,500.
The risk is low and complications are rare. In some rare cases, a patient will suffer from infection at the site of the incision or damage to some facial nerves.
If the procedure is incorrect, a person can end up with an asymmetrical face. This may require another cosmetic procedure to correct.
The recovery is often quick. Dr. Weintraub said a person who has a surgical removal of buccal fat can return to work the next day.
It may take some time for the angular jawline to appear in recipients, as some recipients suffer from swelling for weeks after the procedure.
Radiofrequency microneedling
Microneedling is a relatively painless procedure where a small device is used to puncture their skin in an attempt to refresh and rejuvenate it.
Dr. Weintraub described it as a ‘beautiful thing’ where a person’s face can look fresh and brand new.
Using a small device with a needle attached, a surgeon will poke small holes into a person’s skin tissue.
Then, a radio frequency wave will target tissue under the skin. This warms the skin and stimulates the growth of new collagen fibers.
Collagen is a protein that helps build connective tissue in the body. It is especially valuable for the skin, as it allows it to resist stretching and pulling.
As the skin repairs itself, it is smoother and looks cleaner. This also makes a person look younger.
The procedure itself will usually take about 20 minutes to cover the entire face.
Because it causes little pain and is minimally invasive, people can just walk out of their surgeon’s office and go about the rest of their day with no downtime.
The procedure usually costs between $1,000 to $2,000 for a single session.
Cheekbone fillers
Often a procedure associated with the removal of oral fat, cheekbone fillers are also increasing in popularity.
The procedure works by adding volume to the person’s cheekbones by stimulating collagen production in the cheeks.
The patient receives injections of hyaluronic acid, a natural fluid produced in the eyes and joints.
Its main purpose is to lubricate parts of the body. People suffering from arthritis can receive these injections to help relieve joint pain.
When applied to the cheeks, the liquids give the skin around the cheekbones a more defined appearance.
The procedure smoothes wrinkles around the nose and mouth and makes the cheek more pronounced.
Some may also use the injections to give their face a more symmetrical appearance, and even out an irregularity on the cheekbones.
A patient can return to normal daily activities immediately after receiving the filler, and it takes about two days to become fully visible in a patient.
It can cost between $500 to $1,000 per shot received by a person, with one shot needed for each cheek.
Fox and bedroom eye lift
Surgically creating more ‘sultry’ and ‘sexy’ eyebrows was another trend that emerged at the end of 2022 and followed into the new year.
Fox eyes, slanted eyebrows described by some as ‘almond-shaped’, raise the outside of a person’s eyebrows.
The surgery makes a person’s eyes appear longer and smoothes out wrinkles around them, making them look younger.
While there are many different ways a surgeon can work to create this effect, the most common is a practice called PDO threading.
For this practice, a surgeon will numb a person’s eyebrows and then place threads under a person’s skin.
These strands will raise a person’s eyebrows, giving a person the fox-eyed look. The effect lasts for about three months.
Foxeye procedures usually cost between $500 and $1,000.
Dr. Weintraub also offers a similar procedure, called a ‘Bedroom eye lift’. This procedure changes the eyebrows using filler and raises the middle of the eyebrows.
This creates an effect similar to Fox eyes, removes wrinkles and makes a person look younger.