Minimally invasive aesthetic procedures use botulinum toxin, filler, thread or laser, etc. to bring maximum effect with minimal incision or downtime. As minimally invasive treatments leave no scar with very short recovery time, patients feel little discomfort in their daily lives. In this new series, Dr. Dong-hyun Ahn, Head of Academic Committee of Minimal Invasive Plastic Surgery and Dermatology (MIPS) and Medical Director of Daeyoung Plastic Surgery, will explore the topic of minimally invasive plastic surgery. Dr. Ahn gives frequent talks on this topic to Korean doctors as well as his colleagues around the world. Doctors from other countries recently visited Dr. Ahn’s practice to learn the new techniques first-hand. This series will provide an opportunity for our readers to gain useful information on minimally invasive aesthetic treatments.  

 

Patients visiting a plastic surgeon tend to have common wishes. Most of them want to have the youthful and beautiful looks of celebrities. Another common desire I often encounter lately is that they want the outcome to appear natural. It is difficult for plastic surgeons to find balance between clear effect and the unnatural ‘done’ appearance. Techniques that have been considered effective often involve incision or long downtime as well as side effects.

Fortunately, alternative treatment methods have been developed to avoid these problems while offering simplicity, better safety and efficacy.

 

Diagram of facial tightening treatment

 

A skin tightening procedure using radio frequency (RF) is one such method. This method uses forcep-like cannulas with external and internal electrodes. The procedure is carried out through a fine puncture of 1.2mm made on the skin. Vascular coagulation, lipolysis, and skin tightening are carried out simultaneously. Sagging and loose skin is improved and the gradual improvement continues throughout three months following the procedure. This may be one of the safest treatments as the temperature, impedance, depth, and power are controlled real-time. It does not require incision and is completed within 10-20 minutes per target area. The recovery time is short (most cases return to normal activities after 1-2 days of swelling) and there is no risk of scarring.

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Let’s first take a look at the facial tightening treatment.

As shown in <Figure 1>, RF energy is directly delivered to the skin through the internal and external electrodes. The thermal effect dissolves fat. Using RF energy, the subcutaneous fat is destroyed through minimal incisions.

 

- to be continued