My face hollowed out after losing weight. Which treatment should I start with?
“I've lost the weight, but my face looks older.” I've been hearing this much more often in the consultation room lately. First I ask whether your weight is still coming down or has stopped. Then we sort out whether it's hollowing or sagging. Here's why I set the order this way.
The short answer
When you lose a lot of weight, your face can look hollow and saggy too. In a 2026 review that gathered 46 papers, imaging of 20 people showed midface volume falling by a median of 9%, estimated at about 7% for every 10 kg lost. Rather than in the middle of losing weight, I suggest looking at your face after your weight has settled. If hollowing leads, I use dissolvable hyaluronic acid filler + collagen booster; if sagging comes with it, radiofrequency lifting + collagen booster, in order. That said, studies of facial treatment after weight loss come to just 4 studies and 98 people, none with a control group. At Miso Clinic in Daegu, I ask whether your weight has stopped changing, and start by separating where it has hollowed from where it has sagged.
Why does my face look hollow after losing weight?
The face has fat in compartments too, and when your weight drops, those compartments shrink together. In the 2026 review, the shallow layer shrank by 11% and the deep layer by 7%, so the surface fat tended to go more. In a survey of 1,226 people, the greater the share of weight lost, the more people reported lost volume and sagging. It's self-reported, so I don't take it at face value, but it points the same way.
I'm often asked whether the medication is to blame. Similar changes have been reported after large weight loss by other means, such as surgery, so I look more at how much weight was lost and at your original facial structure and age than at the drug itself. There's no line at which a certain number of kilograms makes the face hollow. The same 10 kg looks different on someone young with firm skin than on someone in their 50s.
→ Read more: Does losing weight on Mounjaro make your face sag?
Hollowing or sagging: what fits which?
| Concern | Type of treatment that fits | Combination at Miso Clinic | What to expect, and the limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deep hollows at the front cheeks or temples | Hyaluronic acid filler | hyaluronic acid filler + Juvelook Volume if needed | Fills straight away and can be dissolved. We don’t overdo the amount |
| The whole face thinner, broadly and gently | Collagen booster | Sculptra · Juvelook Volume · Gouri | Fills in over weeks to months. We split it into sessions |
| Hollowing + a sagging jawline | Lifting first, then filling | Radiofrequency lifting (Density · XERF) + collagen booster | We don’t start a hollow face with deep heat |
| Thinner skin with more fine lines | Material-replenishing skin booster | Lituo (Re2O) or Rejuran | Texture and density. Cannot fill deep hollows |
| Cheek and jawline tissue that has clearly dropped | Support + threads | ligament injection + dissolving threads | If the skin sags enough to fold, a surgical consultation |
Usually, hollowing and sagging come together. The order changes depending on which one stands out first. In front of a mirror, gently lift your cheek with a finger. If it looks a lot better when lifted, sagging is the bigger part; if the shadow stays even when lifted, hollowing is.
→ Read more: Filler first, then radiofrequency lifting
When should I start treatment?
I suggest waiting until your weight has held steady for a few months. If we fill while your face is still changing, it will look different again a few months later. There's no trial comparing timing, so I'll be clear that this is my clinical judgement.
When people ask whether losing weight fast makes you sag more, I honestly answer that we don't know yet. The review also wrote that the effect of speed alone is uncertain. I couldn't find any method proven to prevent sagging either. Still, getting enough protein, wearing sunscreen and staying away from cigarettes are things you won't lose out on.
Please don't stop your medication or put weight back on by yourself because of your face. I couldn't find studies of how the face changes when weight comes back. Decisions about the medication belong with the doctor who prescribed it, based on your health.
Who I suggest each combination for
- Your weight has stopped and hollow front cheeks make you look tired → a small amount of dissolvable hyaluronic acid filler, with a collagen booster for the wider base
- Your whole face looks thin and shadowed → Sculptra or Juvelook Volume, split into sessions
- Hollowing plus a sagging jawline → radiofrequency lifting for the line first, then a collagen booster
- Facial skin that has gone thin and dull → Lituo (Re2O) + radiofrequency lifting
When we do several things on the same day, I split the dates or the areas so they don't overlap on the same spot. I also don't layer several collagen boosters on one area at once. That adds burden such as nodules, with no confirmed benefit.
→ Read more: Filler or collagen booster for hollow cheeks?
When I look at things differently
- If your weight is still coming down, I sometimes hold off on filling treatments.
- A review notes that criteria for devices delivering deep heat to a hollow face haven't been set yet. So I don't start a face where hollowing leads with strong lifting.
- Side cheek hollows can also come from the muscle shrinking after square-jaw Botox. In that case I adjust the Botox interval and amount first.
- If fat under the chin still bothers you after weight loss, liposuction is a treatment we don't offer. We don't offer Ulthera, Thermage, Onda, InMode or Shurink either.
Radiesse and collagen boosters have no dissolving agent. So for people filling for the first time, I tend to suggest hyaluronic acid filler, which can be reversed, first.
→ Read more: Front and side cheek hollows: why they happen and how to fill them
How does the consultation work, and how do I book?
On a first visit we take photos from the front, at 45 degrees and from the side, and together we pick the one concern that bothers you most. I'll ask about any medications you take, any metal or electronic implants in your face, and whether you might be pregnant, and then I split things into what we can do today and what can wait for later. It's completely fine to come in just for a consultation and go home.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Booking | Naver booking · KakaoTalk chat · Phone +82-53-428-2700 |
| Location | 4F Bombom Building, 125 Dongdeok-ro, Jung-gu, Daegu (Exit 1, Kyungpook National University Hospital Station, Line 3) |
| Hours | Weekdays 11:00–19:00 · Saturday 10:00–16:00, closed Sundays and public holidays |
Face hollow after weight loss FAQ
My face hollowed after losing weight. Can I get filler right away?
If your weight is still coming down, I suggest waiting a few months. If your face keeps changing, the filled shape will change again too. This is my clinical judgement, not the result of a comparison trial.
Did Mounjaro or Wegovy make my face hollow?
So far the evidence points more to how much weight was lost than to the drug itself. Similar changes are reported after large weight loss by other means.
If I put weight back on, will my face come back?
I couldn't find studies of how facial volume changes when weight comes back. I won't tell you to gain weight for your face.
Can't I just have lifting?
Lifting can't create volume. If hollowing leads and you have lifting alone, the face can look lifted but gaunt, so I use it alongside a filling treatment.
Which comes first, filler or a collagen booster?
For a deep hollow, dissolvable hyaluronic acid filler comes first; for broad, gentle hollowing, a collagen booster split into sessions.
Where can I get a face hollow after weight loss consultation in Daegu?
At Miso Clinic in Daegu (4F Bombom Building, 125 Dongdeok-ro, Jung-gu, Exit 1 of Kyungpook National University Hospital Station). You can book through Naver booking, KakaoTalk or by phone at +82-53-428-2700. Weekdays 11:00–19:00, Saturday 10:00–16:00, closed Sundays and public holidays.
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Who wrote this
Written and reviewed by Lee Chi-Hak, MD, director of Miso Clinic, Daegu. The treatment standards and injection design set out here are the ones we use in practice.
| Medical director | Lee Chi-Hak, MD |
|---|---|
| Address | 4F Bombom Building, 125 Dongdeok-ro, Jung-gu, Daegu, South Korea · Exit 1, Kyungpook National University Hospital Station |
| Phone | +82-53-428-2700 |
| Hours | Weekdays 11:00–19:00 (lunch 13:00–14:00) / Saturday 10:00–16:00 (no lunch break) / Closed Sundays and public holidays |
| Columns | All clinical columns |
| Reference library | All booster and device references |
References
- Review of weight loss and facial change — Yoo KH. Aesthet Surg J 2026. PMID 42872378. 46 papers; in imaging of 20 people, midface volume fell by a median of 9%, estimated at about 7% per 10 kg. Similar changes have also been reported after large weight loss by other means, such as surgery.
- Studies of facial treatment after weight loss — Maglitto F et al. Aesthetic Plast Surg 2026. PMID 42864543. 4 studies, 98 people, none with a control group. Device review: Cho CH et al. Clin Cosmet Investig Dermatol 2026. PMID 42893183 (criteria for deep heat in a face that has lost volume are still at the hypothesis stage).
- PLLA versus hyaluronic acid filler — Nasolabial folds, 208 people randomised; at 120 weeks, 55.56% versus 25.00%. PMID 42594306.
- PDLLA plus hyaluronic acid versus PLLA — Nasolabial folds, 33 people, split-face; results were similar up to 24 weeks. PMID 41532837.
- What hyaluronidase can dissolve — Miso Clinic column on hyaluronidase: it dissolves hyaluronic acid. There is no dissolving agent for CaHA (Radiesse and similar) or for collagen boosters.
- Human trial of Lituo — Lee YI et al. Int J Mol Sci 2026;27(5):2193. NCT07155278. Split-face, double-blind, randomised, 20 people, 20 weeks.
- Human studies of radiofrequency lifting — Density: Oku 2025 (16 people, 24 weeks); XERF: Hwang 2025 (20 people), Weiss 2026 (39 people), Erlich 2026 (16 people); none had a control group. I could not find a clinical trial of the Oligio Kiss device itself.
- Adverse events with absorbable threads — Ojha AS et al. Dermatol Surg 2025;51(3):272-6. PMID 39442180. 19 studies, 1,406 people: bruising 19.49%, swelling 16.79%, tenderness 9.96%, infection 2.49%, haematoma 0.64%.
- When results show — Miso Clinic column when-results-show: at day 90, 92% of doctors versus 42% of patients. In biopsies after collagen-stimulating products, no new collagen at 2 weeks, type III at 2 months, type I at 3–4 months.
- Korean medical advertising law — Korean Medical Service Act Article 56(2) (no treatment testimonials, no comparisons with other clinics, no superlatives). This is why this column carries no prices, reviews or before-and-after photos.
- Miso Clinic treatment policy — What we have: Density Noir (ALPHA · BOOST tips), XERF, Oligio Kiss; Lituo (Re2O), CellReDM, Reallo; Rejuran; the full Juvelook lineup; Gouri; Everwrinkle and Everwrinkle V; Radiesse; Byryzn; D-Classy; hyaluronic acid filler; Botox (all areas, skin Botox); ligament injection; dissolving threads. What we do not offer: Onda, Thermage, InMode, Ulthera, Shurink, liposuction. Hollow cheeks get dissolvable hyaluronic acid filler first, sagging gets lifting first; no radiofrequency that day with metal or electronic implants in the face, pregnancy or skin inflammation; threads are the dissolving kind, used conservatively over age 50; we decide by the change that bothers you, not by age; results are judged after 2–3 months with photos taken under the same conditions.
Everything in this column is general information and does not replace medical diagnosis or treatment. Effects and side effects vary with individual skin condition, age and underlying illness, and the same result is not guaranteed for everyone. Any decision to proceed should be made in an in-person consultation with a physician.