Treatment can improve the aesthetic appearance of sagging skin on upper arms and above the knees, and fat deposits on the upper back.
Wausau, WI (April 21, 2021) – The rising demand for skin tightening and body sculpting has driven technology solutions in efforts to avoid invasive approaches such as liposuction or cosmetically unappealing scars following surgery. Non-surgical skin tightening has been historically associated with low clinical efficacy and low patient satisfaction. A microneedle fractional radiofrequency device previously shown to be effective in the treatment of cellulite was assessed as a single treatment for body skin laxity and localized fat deposits above the knee. upper arms, and upper-mid back/axillary region (bra-line).
The study demonstrates the effectiveness of radiofrequency microneedling in the treatment of sagging skin on the arms and above the knees, and of localized fat deposits in the bra-line area. These are problems that were historically very difficult to address with few treatment options. The current advance offers an effective single in-office treatment with clinically meaningful improvements and a painless, rapid recovery.
This clinical report, published in Lasers in Surgery and Medicine (LSM), the official journal of the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery, Inc. (ASLMS), was selected as the April 2021 Editor’s Choice.
The study, conducted by Macrene Alexiades, MD, PhD and Girish S. Munavalli, MD, MHS, FACMS, is titled “Single Treatment Protocol with Microneedle Fractional Radiofrequency for Treatment of Body Skin Laxity, Cellulite and Fat Deposits.”
"Treatment of body skin laxity and localized fat deposits has been a challenge,” Alexiades said. “The advent of radiofrequency microneedling, a concept to which I have devoted much research over the past 15 years culminating in a new genre of technology, offered an opportunity to meet this challenge. The current successful application of this single non-surgical treatment to the upper arms, bra-line and above the knees offers a solution and is an important advance in our field.”
Dr. Alexiades is an Associate Clinical Professor at Yale University School of Medicine and attending at the Yale-New Haven Hospital and West Haven Veterans Administration Hospital system for two decades. She is the national representative of the American Laser Institute and recently elected to the ASLMS board. She researches lasers & energy-based devices and practices in Manhattan.
Dr. Munavalli is the medical director and founder of Dermatology, Laser & Vein Specialists of the Carolinas in Charlotte, NC. He also currently serves as Assistant Clinical Professor of Dermatology at the Wake Forest University Department of Dermatology and Clinical Assistant Professor in Department of Medicine at UNC School of Medicine, Carolinas Medical Center. He has over 40 scientific publications and has served as principal investigator in a broad range of clinical research trials and FDA pivotal trials.
Editor’s Choice is an exclusive article published in LSM, the official journal of the ASLMS. View the complete manuscript.
The American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery, Inc. (ASLMS) is the largest multidisciplinary professional organization dedicated to the development and application of lasers and related technology for health care applications. ASLMS promotes excellence in patient care by advancing biomedical application of lasers and other related technologies worldwide. ASLMS membership includes physicians, surgeons, nurses, and allied health professionals representing multiple specialties, physicists involved in product development, biomedical engineers, biologists, industry representatives and manufacturers. For more information, visit aslms.org.