HIFU uses ultrasonic energy (emission of an acoustic wave through the tissues at a precise point which delivers, in a time of the order of a millisecond, an emission of heat greater than 65°). The impacts will act on each layer of the skin. This rise in temperature makes it possible either to act on the collagen or on the fatty cells of the hypodermis.
Thus, the skin’s fibroblasts will produce more collagen, which will restore firmness but also elastin fibers which will give better tone to the skin.
We always go from deepest to the upper layers of the epidermis, from the inside out.
It is also possible, in front of a strong double chin or large jowls , to treat the hypodermis, that is to say the fat, to a depth of 6mm.
Progress of the anti-relaxation ultrasound session
After questioning, the doctor agrees with his or her patient on the area to be treated. Then he applies an ultrasound gel so that the ultrasound penetrates the skin well. With a handpiece, he will draw a certain number of well-defined lines.
The device sends impacts to different depths of the skin: 4.5mm, 3mm, 1.5mm. Each impact creates a point of retraction in the skin which is thus stimulated in depth and on the surface.
This session is painless, you only feel tingling and it lasts between 45 minutes and 60 minutes when it is a question of restoring the oval of a face, a little less if it is only a question of raising the eyebrows . No blue, no edema are to be feared at the end of the session. The skin is just a little dewy but visibly more relaxed and firmer.
In principle, one session is enough to reshape the oval of a face but in the event of significant skin sagging, it is possible to do a second session 6 weeks after the first.
Video of Dr Catherine DE GOURSAC, member of the AFME board of directors
What are the best indications?
Moderate skin sagging of the entire face, at the level of the eyelids and especially the oval and to reduce a double chin and jowls with the objective of a medical “lifting effect”, without surgery
- Skin sagging of the neck and décolleté
- Drooping eyelids, sagging eyebrows
- Malar bags (edema localized on the cheekbones).
This treatment can be performed on both women and men, on all skin types and phototypes. It can be carried out in all seasons, sun exposure is not bothersome either before or after the treatment.
Facial rejuvenation using high-intensity focused ultrasound is a medical technique, now at the point that can only be practiced by specialized doctors (see a doctor’s opinion after one year of using Ultherapy° ).
What results with HIFU? Before and after pictures
The results, already visible at the end of the session, improve over time because the fat cells are definitively destroyed after several weeks and the stimulated fibroblasts only react after 60 to 90 days. The lifting effect is therefore accentuated from week to week. It becomes optimal after three months and lasts two years on average.