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Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery-SanFrancisco Bay Area|Marin County

CoolSculpting Now Available for Dr. Miguel Delgado’s Patients

September 25th, 2013 Miguel A. Delgado Jr, MD

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Many San Francisco Bay Area patients complain about difficult problem areas of fat, especially for the waist “love handles” and abdomen that do not seem to respond to dieting or vigorous exercise. Previously, the only solution for removing fat other than dieting was by liposuction surgery. For many patients, liposuction is not an option due to required time off work for post-operative recovery and then there are some patients that just do not want to have surgery. CoolScuplting patients are thrilled that there isn’t any downtime, needles, scalpels, suction hoses or scars. The cost of CoolSculpting is significantly less than a surgical procedure.

Now, thanks to research done by doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, CoolSculpting was developed. Doctors had noted that children were losing fat in their cheeks that were eating a lot of popsicles and many even developed dimples. This lead them to discover that fat cells treated with intense coldness died and then were naturally eliminated from the body. It is not a fast process, but the results are permanent.

Doctors found that fat is destroyed when it is cooled down to a certain temperature while not harming surrounding tissues and muscles. A machine (CoolSculpting) was developed that has an applicator that pulls an area of fat into the cooling panels, making the area numb from the intense coldness. In order to protect the skin during treatment, a pad with gel is placed over the area to be treated.  Patients claim that the treatment is not painful but that they feel a small amount of pressure and coldness from the plates. Side effects are minimal, if any, and would consist of some; numbness, redness and possible minor bruising and swelling which is only temporary. Each treated area takes about an hour, and about 20% of the fat cells in a treated area are destroyed.CoolSculpting Machine

Results will begin to be noticed after 2 to 3 weeks and will continue for about 2 to 3 months. For many patients, the initial treatment is all that is needed, however, some patients want to  shrink and sculpt problem areas, and may opt for more treatments, but they need to wait 2 to 3 months between treatments.

Many more patients are learning about CoolSculpting, which is now FDA cleared, from friends and television shows featuring the body sculpting benefits. Each year as cosmetic plastic surgery procedures increase, CoolSculpting seems to be gaining a lot of notoriety with both men and women. Cosmetic procedures for men are increasing every year, with liposuction and gynecomastia surgery  high on the list. Now with CoolSculpting targeting the abdomen and love handles, the number of men seeking the procedure is gaining significant popularity and women are thrilled to see their “muffin tops” disappearing.  CoolSculpting Machine

Advantages of CoolSculpting over liposuction would be; no prescription medications are needed, no pre-operative lab tests, no special recovery garments and no time off work. The skin will retract better since the fat doesn’t go away quickly.

CoolSculpting is not for everyone; it is for people with those stubborn areas of fat, but it is not considered a weight loss program. If you should gain weight in the future, the remaining cells will grow and store additional fat. The ideal candidate is no more than 20 to 30 pounds overweight. For the patient that adheres to a normal diet and exercise program maintaining long term results should not pose a problem.

The best way to determine if you are a candidate for CoolSculpting is to schedule a consultation with cosmetic plastic surgeon specialist, Dr. Delgado at either his 450 Sutter Street San Francisco, CA office or his 165 Rowland Way, Novato, CA office. Dr. Delgado will be able to help you determine if your goals can be obtained with CoolSculpting.

Once you are scheduled for treatment, you will be asked to arrive in comfortable loose fitting clothing. You may bring a book to read or IPad or Laptop for the duration of the treatment, some patients choose to take a nap!

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