CoolSculpting®

CoolSculpting® Elite technology works by cooling/freezing fat cells in problem areas. The fat inside the cells will crystalize and damage the cell membrane. Then gradually over the next few weeks to months, the damaged cells and fat will be removed form your body.

CoolSculpting is a very well tolerated procedure. It is completed as an outpatient procedure in the clinic setting. After you arrive at the clinic, the staff will take you to the treatment room. They will have you undress and provide you with appropriate covering.

The providers will then draw onto the area(s) for placement of the handpiece(s). With the CoolSculpting Elite, we can treat 2 areas at the same time. This will save you treatment time. After the treatment plan is completed, the procedure can begin.

The handpiece will be attached to the skin and uses a slight suction to pull the fat up into the handpiece. You will feel a cold sensation which can cause a slight discomfort. Some compare to applying an ice pack to their skin. After about 5 minutes, the skin will go numb. Each treatment will be between 35 to 1 hr 15 minutes depending on the treatment areas.

Once the treatment time is up, the staff will remove the handpiece and massage the the treated area. This can feel strange and even be a little uncomfortable.

You can then get dressed and even go back to work on the same day if you desire. Or, you may want to spend a little more time in the clinic treating multiple areas on the same day.

In the past, the original CoolSculpting treatments were based upon the number of cycles that you would use. In general, this was around $600 per cycle. A cycle is the number of times the handpiece is attached to you for treatment. So, if you needed 6 cycles to just your abdomen, it would be $3,600 but often patients would need to treat the same area multiple times or sessions. So if you needed to treat the abdomen as above a second time, you would be at $7,200. This would often increase the cost to be higher than even liposuction. In many cases, it became cost prohibitive.

With the NEW CoolSculpting Elite, the pricing has changed drastically, now you pay by the area which includes multiple sessions for the same price. We are currently offering a low introductory price of $1,999 per area. You can then treat the same area with multiple sessions and is no longer dependent upon the number of cycles used.

Anyone not overweight or obese yet has areas of unwanted fat that don’t respond to diet or exercise are good candidates for CoolSculpting® Elite. CoolSculpting® Elite is NOT a weight loss program. Potential clients should be less than 30 pounds from their ideal body weight before undergoing body-contouring treatments. CoolSculpting® Elite is ideal for those smaller stubborn areas of unwanted fat that do not respond to diet and exercise.

CoolSculpting is NOT a weight loss program and will not replace the need for liposuction or surgical intervention for some patients that are significantly overweight or have laxity of the skin.

Pre-existing medical conditions such as Raynaud's syndrome or cold urticaria, active infection, extensive scarring or hernia in the treatment areas.

The ice crystals that form with CoolSculpting pierce the cell membrane causing the cells to die. The dead cells are then recognized by the immune system.

The treated fat cells and the fat are gradually removed from the treatment area by the immune system and are eliminated from the body, meaning they’re gone for good.

Multiple studies show that there is no risk when the fat is removed. It is naturally reabsorbed by the body. The contents are broken down by the body and used in other areas. Studies also show that treatment with CoolSculpting does NOT elevate cholesterol or triglycerides.

The great thing about CoolSculpting is that the results are permanent. Once the fat cells are eliminated from the body, they are gone forever.

CoolSculpting does not remove 100% of fat cells from the treated area. The remaining fat cells can store fat with weight gain.

If you remain diligent with diet, exercise and maintain your weight, your results should last for many years.

The simple answer is no. CoolSculpting® Elite is not a weight loss program. It is meant to treat problematic and stubborn fat deposits in clients who are less than 30 pounds from their ideal weight. As with any body sculpting procedure, the appearance of the treated area will change if you gain back the weight and as you age.

CoolSculpting® Elite simply provides a kickstart for clients to lead a healthier lifestyle, including improved diet and exercise.

Each CoolSculpting® Elite treatment is different, so the timeline depends on which areas of the body and how many of them you plan on doing. Depending on the area, treatment can be done in as little as 35 minutes. If you opt to do multiple treatments in a session, expect to spend more time. The CoolSculpting® Elite technology features dual applicators, allowing patients to do multiple treatment areas at once, reducing the time spent in the office as compared to using one CoolSculpting® Elite applicator.

There is no downtime necessary with CoolSculpting® Elite. Most men and women will go back to their daily activities immediately after treatment.

Many clients will notice an improvement in the areas of unwanted fat starting two to three weeks after the CoolSculpting® Elite treatment.

More noticeable and permanent results will be visible in about two months after treatment. You may even continue to see improvement for four to six months as your body removes the fat cells from the treated area(s).

CoolSculpting is a no downtime procedure. During the CoolSculpting® Elite procedure you may experience a tugging and pulling sensation, mild pinching with some stinging and intense cold sensations during treatment.

After treatment, the skin will appear red and feel firm to the touch. The area may feel numb and tender, with some bruising and swelling of the treated area. In most cases, these symptoms will go away in a few hours although the treated area may remain sensitive to touch for a few days.

A small percentage of clients may develop pain in the treated area. This due to the nerves in the area being damaged and inflamed. This is much less likely to occur with the CoolSculpting Elite. It is most likely to occur on the abdomen and I would estimate it to be less than 2% of the abdomen treatments. This may require treatment with a prescription medication call Gabapentin. The discomfort generally resolves in 1 to 2 days once the Gabapentin is started.

Another odd and rare side effect is Paradoxical Adipose Hyperplasia. This is what you may have heard affected Linda Evangelista. This is where the treated area actually increases in size. The cause of this issue is unknown and thankfully very rare. Allergan the company that makes CoolSculpting estimates the incidence of PAH to be around 0.033% or 1 in 3000 treatments.

As mentioned above, some individual are not candidates for CoolSculpting due to medical issues or simply there is too much fat to remove with cryolipolysis.

You will see multiple individuals marketing "cryolipolysis" but they are using poorly built machines often coming out of Chine that simply do not work. Make sure that you are only going to a clinic with the ONLY FDA approved cryolipolysis treatments. Do NOT fall for it and ask to see the actual machine they will be using.

There are other options out there such as radiofrequency which uses radiofrequency to produce heat in the fat tissue essentially making the fat cells "pop". There are some effective units on the market that are FDA approved.

There are lasers being sold that are supposed to remove fat through the skin also using heat while using cooling to protect your skin. I do not have direct exposure to these procedures but I have heard that they are limited in their results.

Injectables have even been used for destruction of fat. The most common one is Kybella. It is only good for small areas such as the fat under the chin. It has fallen tot he wayside secondary to the cost as well as the need for multiple sessions which cause itching, bruising, swelling and inflammation that can last a couple of weeks.

Surgical intervention is also always an option. This can range from liposuction to surgical interventions such as a tummy tuck or even gastric bypass.