Fighting Aging: Remolding facial fat

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - Many of us want to look and feel younger, but either we don’t need or aren’t ready for plastic surgery. Now there’s a new procedure, done right in the doctors office, that can reset the aging process and remodel facial fat.

“I mean just gravity, just gravity. You just start seeing everything start to come down a little bit,” says 56-year-old Mary Snead.

Over time, she says gravity has wreaked havoc on her neck and face.

“It is a natural part of aging,” says Dr. Mark Peters, a plastic surgeon in Houma. “We lose collagen as we get older. So the ligaments and things holding in place stretch and we lose fat.”

Dr. Peters says in the past, the solution was all or nothing, the all being a costly facelift.

Today, it’s a new, less invasive, less expensive procedure called Embrace RF.

“Patients who were told you need a face lift and they’re saying, I don’t want to have a facelift, it’s too expensive and I don’t want to scar. They can do this,” Dr. Peters says. “This is going to significantly tighten their skin without that.”

Snead says she’s been looking for something non-invasive that actually works, so she decided to undergo the one hour, 2-part Embrace RF treatment.

It’s done right in the doctor’s office.

After numbing the neck and jawline, a device called Face-tite goes under the skin and delivers radio frequency energy.

There’s an internal probe and external electrode. They exchange energy back and forth.

The heat increases collagen production which also tightens the skin.

The 2nd part of Embrace RF involves a micro-needling device called Morpheus 8, just recently approved by the FDA.

It also generates heat and is the first device to mold fat subdermally in order to better define the jaw line and rejuvenate the neck.

Dr. Peters says,“They both work synergistically to mold the fat. And really you don’t want to take everything away, so the Morpheus is actually able to move the fat just below the surface of the skin so that you get a smoother more youthful appearance.”

Possible side effects are short lived, such as swelling, redness and tingling, but is it safe?

Doctors say when it comes to the radio frequency used, it’s highly controlled.

They continually monitor the device during treatment to make sure there’s enough heat for new collagen production and cell regeneration without overheating.

Like most procedures, evidence of contouring is not immediate.

Patients won’t see the bulk of the results for four to six months, but before and after photos show noticeable improvements.

Dr. Peters says one of the biggest questions from patients is how long will it last.

“It’s a reset. We simply reset things and aging goes on from there,” Dr. Peters says. “We are not stopping the process, we’re just resetting the aging process.”

Snead loves the subtlety of it.

She says, “I think if people look at you and say, wow did you change your hair color? I don’t know exactly what you did, but you just look good.”

Snead hopes by this summer, Embrace RF will have her looking like she turned back the clock.

“Hoping to look rested, like I vacationed, maybe younger,” Snead says.

Dr. Peters says Embrace RF will cost you between $4,000 and $6,000. A full facelift will cost closer to $15,000.

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