Conditions
CoolSculpting®
Results of Treatment
Results are permanent as new fast cells are not grown to replace cells that are destroyed by CoolSculpting®.
About Fat Reduction / CoolSculpting®
Stubborn, excess areas of fat bother many people, and are hard to get rid of. The ‘love handles’ on the sides of our abdomens are particularly difficult to remove even with diet and exercise. In the past, the only option to remove these was with liposuction in which a hollow tube, or cannula, is inserted underneath the skin to suction out excess fat. This works well but is invasive and requires a relatively long recovery time.
CoolSculpting® is a ground-breaking treatment that exploits the different temperatures at which fat and skin are injured. Fat is known to be more sensitive to injury by cold, as it was discovered many years ago that children can get dimples or depressions in the skin from popsicles that damage some of the fat cells at the bottom of our skin. This susceptibility to cold is exploited by CoolSculpting® which uses cold to reduce fat on your body non-invasively. This means removing unwanted pockets of fat without surgery. No cutting of the skin, no anesthesia, and no downtime. The CoolSculpting® procedure involves placing an applicator on the skin which draws the targeted area of fat into the applicator cup with suction, and then cools the fat while protecting the overlying skin. A typical CoolSculpting® session takes 35 minutes, and multiple sessions may be performed on different areas of the body on the same day. There is no downtime with CoolSculpting® and you may return to your normal activities immediately following treatment. Over the next several weeks after treatment, the body will naturally remove the damaged fat cells from the treated area, revealing the results of your treatment.
CoolSculpting® is FDA cleared to remove stubborn pockets of fat on various areas of the body, including the abdomen, love handles, inner and outer thighs, the chin area or double chin, arms and virtually any other area than can fit within an applicator. Your body continues flushing out the dead fat cells for several weeks after treatment. It might take as little as three weeks for you to notice the fat reduction in the treated areas, but typically two to three months are necessary to see the full results of a treatment. Areas are typically treated one or two times. Results are permanent as new fat cells are not grown to replace cells that are destroyed by CoolSculpting®.
Fat Reduction / CoolSculpting® FAQs
WHAT AREAS OF FAT DOES COOLSCULPTING® REMOVE?
CoolSculpting® removes isolated pockets of fat on multiple areas of the body including the abdomen, sides (love handles), inner and outer thighs, upper lower arms (bat wings), lower buttock area, upper back, arms and under chin (submental) areas.
CAN I USE COOLSCUPTING® INSTEAD OF DIETING TO LOSE WEIGHT?
No. CoolSculpting® is for reducing isolated areas of fat that won’t resolve with standard dieting. Even large areas of fat can be reduced on the abdomen, but CoolSculpting® will not accomplish weight loss. Diet and exercise as directed by one’s physician is the best way to lose unwanted pounds.
WHAT HAPPENS TO THE FAT THAT IS TREATED WITH COOLSCULPTING®?
Fat cells damaged by CoolSculpting® undergo apoptosis, or programmed cell death. This means that they die over time and are removed and excreted from the body the way fat in food is eliminated.They will disappear over time, so results take a minimum of 3 weeks to see.
HOW IS COOLSCULPTING® DIFFERENT FROM LIPOSUCTION?
Liposuction removes fat by inserting metal cannula (hollow metal tube) into the fat below the skin and disrupts the fat by being moved back and forth in the fatty layer, while loosened fat is suctioned out of the body through the hollow cannula. Liposuction is invasive as it requires the cannula to be inserted under the skin through an incision. A great deal of fat can be removed by liposuction and healing is accompanied by significant bruising and swelling. Anesthesia is injected into the fatty layer for pain control with liposuction. In contrast, CoolSculpting® is non-invasive and does not require any anesthesia. Patients are treated in the office and have no downtime. Fat disappears gradually over time following treatment.
HOW MANY COOLSCULPTING® TREATMENTS WILL IT TAKE TO REMOVE AN AREA OF UNWANTED FAT?
To remove a single area of fat one or two treatments are usually all that is required in most people. Treatments generally take 35 or 45 minutes.
DOES COOLSCULPTING® HURT?
For the first 5 minutes of a treatment the skin feels cold and after that there is little, if any, discomfort. In the past, applicators that applied greater suction produced some discomfort from pulling on the skin. Newer applicators do not have this issue.
WHAT ARE THE IMMEDIATE EFFECTS OF COOLSCULPTING®?
Immediately following treatment the treated area resembles a cool, red stick of butter. Fat gets firm as it is cooled just as butter or oil do. The treated area tingles following treatment, and is massaged for a few minutes to break up fat crystals and increase the amount of fat that is removed, which feels like fingers thawing out after a cold day. For a few days following treatment the treated area is a little swollen due to the inflammation following treatment. This means that after treating the abdomen or love handles that pants can feel a little tighter than normal.
WHAT ARE POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS OF COOLSCULPTING®?
Discomfort following treatment that requires medication for up to a month was a rare complication following CoolSculpting® with the older applicators. Now with the newer applicators that apply less suction, this rare side effect is extremely rare. Paradoxical fat growth in the treated area is a rare side-effect, termed paradoxical fat hypertrophy. This occurs because for reasons we don’t understand fat can get thicker from inflammation rather than shrinking as it usually does. The cause of this side effect is not known, and isolated liposuction has been used to reverse it.
HOW DO I CARE FOR THE TREATED AREA?
No aftercare is required following CoolSculpting®.
WHO ARE NOT CANDIDATES FOR COOLSCULPTING®?
People with known hypersensitivity to cold including those with cryoglobulinemia and poor circulation in the area to be treated should avoid treatment. In addition, those bleeding disorders or on blood thinners should avoid treatment. People with a hernia in or near the area to be treated, or with a recent surgery or scar tissue in the area to be treated should avoid treatment in those areas.
