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) 🙂