Hello everyone!
It's certainly been a BUSY winter here in our practice! Seems like more than just a few people have taken Part I and Part II of my blog to heart and gotten busy skimming inches off their bellies and thighs with Vaser Shape and Vaser Lipo! (That was Part I of my last blog). Just as an update...we now make HcG injections part of our menu of options for those hoping to trim down before spring and summer. Call my office for more information on this, as we have diet and exercise advice to add to the traditional HcG diet popularized by Dr. Simeon's in the 1950's. For many patients, the metabolic boost provided by HcG injections makes following the diet so much easier...quite simply, I know of no other quicker or safer ways to lose unwanted poundage! (Like many of our patients, surgeons are notoriously interested in quick and immediate results!)
To update our Vaser Shape followers...we have now completed our initial series of 70 patients with at least 4 Vaser Shape treatments each, and Melanie, Rita, Terry and I continue to hone our skills in achieving at least one or two inches of lost circumferential measurement in ALL patients! Most patients are losing an average of 2 to 4 inches in a month without dietary intervention. Some of our patients are using HcG in addition, and although we do not enter their data into our research protocols, they are pleased as they can be!
There are now some exciting results coming in from animal studies which are delineating how well the Vaser Shape non-invasive ultrasound is working to create both skin tightening as well as fat reduction, and I have just submitted some of our patient data for the first publications on Vaser Shape, and will be doing some international speaking regarding results and treatment protocols being developed. I will be hosting a workshop in Sydney, Australia next month, so will hopefully be able to collaborate with other practitioners who are finding clinical success with Vaser Shape around the globe! As always, we are happy to meet with prospective patients either one on one or in group consultation for a discussion of the best Body Contouring options...Vaser Shape or traditional liposuction/tummy tuck via Vaser Lipo. Also, join us for our next Cocktails and Consults, March 3rd from 4PM to 7PM on Vaser Shape and Vaser Lipo. We will have a great local food sponsor, drinks, and our local celebrity patient, Linda Lambert from 102.3 The Max radio station! Other Vaser Shape and Vaser Lipo patients will be there as well, both devices will be on hand, and Chuck Wright, our Sound Surgical representative, will be joining us. During the evening, I will give a presentation followed by live patient Vaser Shape demo's! Call to RSVP!
Now on to Part III of our winter skin tips...
Last blog we covered our favorite skin care products, and each of our staff weighed in with their "must-have" products. This week I wanted to touch on some of our favorite laser procedures for the face, neck, chest and decollatage areas. As many of you know, we own the Sciton Contour Profile laser system which is a uniquely designed device. We designed the laser specs for a device that has the flexibility to treat many skin problems within a single laser system. Since I was the first physician to bring this technology to the Louisville area, my nurses and myself now have over 6 years of experience in skin peels, ProFractional skin tightening, Broadband light treatments for sun damage and brown spots, treatment of visible facial and leg blood vessels and rosacea, and non-invasive skin tightening of the face and neck. I employ two registered nurses to assist with and perform laser treatments every day. We are happy to meet with prospective patients in one on one consultations to design a comprehensive treatment program of laser and skin care products that work together. There is still time before spring and summer to really work on your skin.
One of my favorite no downtime procedures to do all year is a combination Skin Tyte and BBL treatment for sun damage. I am outside all year long riding horses and running and love the pigment control and tightening I receive with a single ST/BBL laser treatment. I recommend a series of 6 treatments a year for patients who want the convenience of a no recovery procedure and who are trying their hardest to either put off the facelift, or who are trying to maintain the results of a facelift. As the laser gently heats the deeper layer of skin (the dermis or collagen layer), it thickens the skin, which makes it tighter and smoother.
For patients who can afford 3 to 5 days of mild swelling and bruising, and who want more visible tightening in a single session, I recommend ProFractional. We can vary the depth of treatment to control both the amount of tightening as well as the recovery period. Since all of these treatments are performed right here in our office, there is no anesthesia or facility fee.
For patients who desire skin smoothing, we like the laser peels. We can do a light or superficial peel or we can do a deeper treatment, depending upon how much recovery time a patient can allow, or how much smoothing they desire in a single treatment. The look of the skin after a peel is either similar to a mild sunburn or, for a deeper treatment, perhaps like a sunburn when the blister has come off. Again, no anesthesia or facility fee. Recovery times are 3 to 7 days, depending upon depth of the peel. This is the treatment we recommend the most frequently for acne scar patients or patients with deeper wrinkles. We can really do a lot of smoothing in a series of 1 to 3 peels for large pores, deep wrinkles or acne scars.
Probably the laser procedure I love the most is the combination laser peel plus ProFractional. Rita and Melanie are way skilled in making patients comfortable for this combination laser treatment, in which we can combine the peel for skin smoothing, and the ProFractional for skin tightening...a winning combination for wrinkles, large pores, pigment problems, and skin that is beginning to become lax or saggy. The face and neck are done together, and again, depth is decided upon after considering what the patient needs, as well as how long they can allow for recovery, usually only slightly longer than each treatment performed alone (ie, days to a week).
Since the Sciton laser uses evaporative/ablative wavelengths of light to effect the magical changes seen in our skin smoothing treatments like the peels, there is no heat involved in a typical peel, and therefore the healing times are much quicker and more comfortable. It is really the heat incorporated in other laser resurfacing treatments which hurts, and creates the significant downtimes with respect to skin redness following the treatments. In certain patients who desire more of a deep treatment, we can provide a bit of oral sedation and do a much deeper treatment, or in select cases (deepest acne scars or wrinkles), we might elect to go to an outpatient surgical facility such as our Eastpoint Surgery Center, to do a deeper laser resurfacing peel under anesthesia. However, most patients prefer to do moderately deeper peels right here in our office, and can do a series of even 3 deep "doctor peels" with me, and still not spend as much money as one deeper operating room peel, and with less recovery time.
So you really can use these bleak winter months to make significant improvements in the quality of your skin! Look over our Blogs, find out what your "hot topics" are, and schedule an appointment to come in and let me, Rita or Melanie put together a treatment package just for you. You might also want to call us or go online and see what "Spring Break specials" Cynthia is putting together right now. Be sure you have an updated email address for us to use to stay connected with the latest our office has to offer! Join us on Facebook or our website for new postings to Blogspot, and contact me personally to suggest new topics for our blog, Sculpt. I will discuss my favorite injectable treatments in an upcoming post.
Here's to a great-looking face for 2011!
Best to you,
Julene
