We will begin by reviewing what cellulite is and its cause. We will discuss market demand and Thermage’s mechanism of action for treating cellulite.
Cellulite is often described as having an appearance like an orange peel or a mattress. Fat cells are visible through the skin layers and become uneven. Cellulite is typically seen on the thigh and buttock regions of women.
Read first two bullets Cellulite occurs most often in post pubescent females and can be driven by hereditary factors, as well as increased body mass.
This is a high demand treatment in which only a few devices directly affect cellulite and are FDA cleared to temporarily improve the appearance of cellulite. Patients have been looking for a better solution to this problem for a long time. Many statements throughout literature have confirmed that cellulite is a condition that occurs in a majority of women. As a result between 2007 and 2011 the number of cellulite procedures is expected to grow 19% per year This is one of the highest growth rate for any non-invasive procedure according to a 2007 Millennium Group Report 4. Many patients in Thermage studies have been pleased to learn that only one treatment is required to see improvement that lasts. A single treatment also eliminates patient compliance issues associated with multiple treatments.
Thermage addresses two problems that cause cellulite. Thermage uses radio frequency energy to deep heat collagen which improves connective tissues and increases circulation to cellulite prone areas.
This animation demonstrates what occurs during and after the Thermage cellulite treatment.
The ThermaTip CL is available in REP counts of 900 and 1200 to produce optimal results. No treatments in our clinical and marketing evaluations were treated with fewer than 500 pulses per thigh area.
If you are a NXT user you must first upload software version 1.4.0 or higher before the ThermaTip CL can be utilized. The TC-3 systems do not require software upgrades.
This patient had an excellent result that according to her doctor has lasted beyond these 6 month photographs.
Here is another great result in early studies.
And yet another great result. All these patients maintained their weight within 5 pounds of there pre-treatment weight.
These are patient photos from clinical studies performed in Mexico. Here the treated area is flatter and smoother.
At six months post treatment this patient shows smoothing in the treated areas.
Thermage provides the GLD scale on the right to clinicians wanting to evaluate appropriate candidates for the procedure. Ideal candidates for the cellulite procedure have grade II or III cellulite. Patients with grade IV cellulite are not usually good candidates and may not be happy with the outcome. As with all Thermage procedures, the proper expectations are key. Grade classifications: Grade I: no visible cellulite Grade II: After skin contraction or compression there is pallor, decreased temperature and decreased elasticity. Grade III: Padded skin &/or orange peel appearance at rest; palpable sensation of thin granulations in the deep levels; pain to palpation; decreased elasticity; pallor and decreased temperature. Grade IV: Same as III with more palpable, visible and painful nodules, adherence to the deep levels and an obvious wavy appearance of the skin surface .