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Profound pt. iii

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How to Prepare for Profound

 

Pre-Procedure

  • Hydrate sufficiently for the week prior to procedure
  • Consider prepping your skin beforehand, as in moisturizing it
  • Eat a substantial meal before coming in
  • Avoid alcohol and NSAIDS to decrease risk of bruising 
  • Discontinue retinoids and similar active ingredients for at least 3-5 days prior
  • Avoid sun exposure and use spf 30+ 

What to expect after treatment

Immediately after the treatment, we cleanse the face with sterile normal saline. Then we typically apply Alastin Nectar + Balm.

 
  • Wash face gently with a gentle cleanser 2x/day. Pat face dry (no rubbing or exfoliation, absolutely no picking as this can cause PIH!). Let the skin heal on its own
  • Apply Alastin Nectar & Balm at least twice a day to have a consistently glazed appearance. Liberally do this for 1-2 weeks
  • Sleep with head elevated for the first 2-3 nights can help with swelling. Also try not to sleep on side of the face while making sure pillowcases are clean each time
  • Redness can be reduced with our recommended post-care skincare
  • Bruising can be mitigated quickly with a laser in office
  • There is also the post-injection serum by Alastin that can help with bruise reduction and swelling as well
*Remember, the first 1-3 days may be the worst of the swelling
 
Areas that can be treated

Face, neck, chin, jawline, abdomen, inner & outer thighs, arms, skin above knees!

Please Profound me everywhere right? hahah

 
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Profound pt. ii

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How does Profound work

Radiofrequency + Microneedling

There are microneedle electrodes that deploy into the dermis or subcutaneous tissue to precisely deliver fractionated zones of thermal injury without thermal impact to the epidermis. The thermal injury is the radiofrequency aspect – it stimulates a strong wound healing which naturally creates new elastin, collagen, and hyaluronic acid formation: *cue in dermal remodeling! 

With the real-time temperature feedback, the system allows the microneedles to reach optimal temperature, of a specific time duration, in the depth of treatment.

 

Temperature (RF), Time, Depth – What do all these factors do? With the right combination, we are controlling the thermal injury to partially denature collagen, which is effective in triggering a strong wound healing response that addresses the full dermal structure, generating all three vital components of youthful skin: COLLAGEN, ELASTIN, HYALURONIC ACID. 

* Partially denatured collagen can heal 38% faster than fully denatured collagen. It is crucial to reach optimal temperature and time, which the Profound system is precisely designed for.

There are 2 different tips (Dermal & Subcutaneous)

1) For DERMAL tip, the deep dermis is targeted, as this is where concentration of collagen is the highest. This treatment addresses facial wrinkles and skin tightening. Here we see one of the needles penetrating the deep dermis at depth of 1.0-2.0mm. The tip is where the bipolar RF energy is delivered into our deep reticular dermis. Meanwhile the green part of the needle is insulated as to protect the epidermis from thermal damage. The blue part is also the cooling plate at the surface of the skin for protection. 

 

There are a total of 5 pairs of these 32 gauge microneedles (thinner than a hair), to allow for precise fractionated treatment within the dermal tissue = Induce neoelastogenesis and neocollagenesis, renewing skin to look younger, smoother, and tighter! 

 


2) For SUBCUTANEOUS tip, the subcutaneous tissue is targeted to address cellulite. The fractionated injuries increase dermal thickness, remodel septae, and decrease adipose volume. There are a total of 7 pairs of the 32 gauge microneedles, which are oriented at a more perpendicular insertion angle to ensure deeper penetration into the adipose tissue.

The RF energy targets the adipose tissue to coagulate and remodel cellulite. This tip can even be used to debulk pockets of fat (such as in the renowned “double chin”).

 

As you can imagine, there is a lot of purposeful injury to the areas of treatment

Expect a social downtime of at least 1 week.

  • At least 3-7 days of swelling & redness, as well as bruising (I honestly tell patients they will look like a chipmunk – remember when you got your wisdom teeth taken out?)

  • Appearance of tiny dotted insertions on treatment area

As the body replaces the skin with new collagen and elastic tissue, you will see an improvement over several months. Dermal remodeling can continue for 6-12 months, with improvements seen at 3-6 months post treatment. But, may start noticing a difference even around week 2!

 

Next I’ll talk about how to prepare for your treatment (Pre and Post care) 🙂

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Profound pt. i

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Snap back to Younger & Tighter skin again

As we age along with the effects of gravity, we notice our skin being more lax and sagging slowly. Hmph, a normal progression of physics & physicality that we try to embrace with grace. BUT, there’s a treatment that can really improve our baselines if we are not ready nor considering  surgery (such as facelift and necklift) and want something minimally invasive. 

It’s PROFOUND, which is a “single treatment radiofrequency microneedling for facial wrinkles and cellulite.” 

How does AGING show in our skin?

Skin loses elasticity and becomes more fragile. As a result facial wrinkles and appearance of cellulite increases

  1. COLLAGEN levels decrease every year

  2. ELASTIN production stops (starting in our 20s)

  3. HYALURONIC ACID diminishes


WHY choose Profound?

  • Clinically proven to stimulate 2x Collagen, 5x Elastin, and increase Hyaluronic acid – turning back the clock and forcing our skin to be efficiently young again.

  • First and only Radiofrequency (RF) microneedling device FDA cleared for both face and body

  • 1 standalone nonsurgical treatment that can last 2 years (depending on skin maintenance)

  • 100% response rate for facial wrinkles

  • Real-time temperature controlled device that delivers long pulses of RF energy. This is critical in controlling collagen denaturation


WHO is the ideal candidate for Profound, and WHAT can it do for you?

If the desired result is a more lifted appearance. As well as achieving revitalized new, healthy skin to look more youthful

  • Firmer, smoother skin

  • Wrinkle reduction (works best in conjunction with botox/neuromodulators)

  • Improvement of the jowls

  • Improvement of sagging skin on upper neck

Remember to have realistic expectations and realize this treatment will not 100% replace the results of a facelift, necklift, or tummy-tuck. Profound is a great alternative, if you are not ready for surgery or would like to avoid one (be it you are not old enough or looking for more preventative measures or want a shorter commitment to recovery) 🙂

On the next post, I’ll talk about how Profound works!

 
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Miradry

More Miradry questions

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Ok so now you’ve hopefully gotten about an 80% reduction – that bone dry underarm. The magical part is that those sweat glands are destroyed permanently and can’t produce odor anymore. You’ll also notice some patchy hair loss since the microwave energy heat from Miradry disabled some hair follicles, a pleasant side effect!

What else to expect right after the procedures?

You will most likely have some pretty sizeable swelling and lumpiness. Patients have stated it kind of feels like you have golf balls under your underarm. Also expect bruising as well, therefore coordinate the scheduling of the procedures AT LEAST 2 weeks before any important event or vacation where you plan to wear something sleeveless – this is wholly for aesthetic purposes since you probably will not feel comfortable with swollen armpits in say… like a wedding dress :P. I like to recommend my patients to look at youtube videos of people’s personal journeys with miradry so they can visualize the process and see what to expect afterwards.

Do expect tenderness, tingling, and numbness of the underarm, which could last for weeks. As well as potential loss of sensation in the area.

Post care

  • No intense exercise/sweating for 1 week
  • Massage and stretch to reduce swelling and tightness
  • Ibu + ice for 72 hrs
  • Wash underarms gently twice a day with gentle/mild soap.

Another question I had about Miradry, does it increase risk of cancer?

It is deemed an extremely safe treatment and there is no evidence that Miradry causes any type of cancer. The microwave radio waves target areas that produce sweat, which is directly below the layer of the skin. Thus the breast tissue and lymph nodes are located much deeper and are not impacted. 

Hope this gives more peace of mind and answered some more questions! Let me know if you can think of other questions 🙂

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Miradry

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Summer is basically here, with spring 2020 just literally skipping over us huh. 

Now that we are slowly returning back to society coming out of quarantine, we are reminded that we should probably wear deodorant and maybe shave when we are wearing our sleeveless outfits.

 

I personally sweat easily. Especially when I’m feeling warm, or even flushed with embarrassment or stress. I would absolutely love to have the miraDry treatment one day.

What is Miradry?

SWEAT, ODOR, HAIR

  • FDA approved in 2011 for treating excessive underarm sweating
  • Also cleared in 2015 to permanently eliminate underarm hair of all colors, as well as odor glands
  • For optimal results, it is recommended to treat 2-3 times, at least 3 months apart
  • However even with 1 treatment, it is clinically proven to have an average of 82% sweat reduction and 89% odor reduction

Of course results can vary from patient to patient

 

How does it work?

  • Noninvasive procedure that uses electromagnetic energy which target and destroy sweat gland via thermolysis – aka “microwave” technology
  • The energy works in depth of 2mm-5mm below skin’s surface where most sweat glands reside
  • Local anesthesia is injected for numbing as well as padding the nerve bundles farther away from the energy
  • There is a vacuum suction which stabilizes the skin and brings the sweat glands closer to the energy
  • The skin is also cooled with a cooling plate and temperature sensor to monitor and protect the dermis

It is about an hour long treatment where you can get to know your provider or listen to music and podcasts.

 

Is it bad to destroy the sweat glands in our armpits??

Nope not at all. We have ~2 million sweat glands throughout the body, and only 2% exist in our underarms. Sweating will be normal elsewhere and will not affect your body’s ability to regulate and cool off.

 

PRE-Procedure:

  • Shave your underarms at least 4 days prior, to prevent small cuts and infection. We also want to see some hair growth by the time you come into office to determine area of treatment
  • Don’t wear deodorant to the office
  • Wear a loose tank top and/or sports bras for easy access to underarms

*Note: Make sure to not schedule the procedure when you are planning to wear a sleeveless outfit within the next 1-2 weeks, for aesthetic reasons. So, obviously don’t do this treatment before a tropical vacation.

 

RESULTS + AFTERCARE and expectations:

Sweat glands that are targeted are permanently  destroyed and do not regenerate!

Results begin immediately, long-lasting, and are often permanent results.

You may notice 100% dry with no sweat, however after 2-3 weeks some sweat will return.

  • There will be bruising, swelling, and lumpiness 

  • Numbness and tingling can last for 5 weeks

  • Localized soreness and swelling – can gently stretch out armpits

  • ICE + IBUprofen to manage pain & swelling

 
That was a lot of information, but what questions do you have? I’m a visual person, so here are a couple of clips to show the general progress of what to expect 🙂

You can soon kiss your deodorant good bye! No long worry about ruining your outfits with sweat stains, and definitely go in for the big bear hugs at summer weddings without a care for sweaty, wet armpits.
 
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