Some cosmetic surgery procedures are inevitably accompanied by post-operative scars. But a new American technique, based on heat and helium, promises to tighten the skin of the body or face without leaving any stigma.
Guest of the show Well done for you (Europe 1), Wednesday February 16, Doctor Éric Plot, plastic and aesthetic surgeon and member of the French Society of Plastic Aesthetic Surgeons, reveals the ins and outs.
An innovative technique
Developed three years ago in the United States, this technique makes it possible to tighten the skin without causing scars. As Dr. Plot explains, “it consists of carrying out mini incisions to introduce a probe under the skin which will release helium gas”.
At the same time, “the radio frequency will come and bombard the helium gas. This creates a thermal stress, which increases the temperature to 80-90 degrees over very short times (barely two milliseconds). And it is this very brutal repeated stress that will cause skin retraction“, details the surgeon.
When the area is limited, the operation can be done under local anesthesia, but the larger the area to be treated, the more general anesthesia is chosen.
Note: this combination of techniques is only indicated only if the skin is “a little relaxed”.
“You shouldn’t imagine that if you have completely loose stomach skin, it will work. There you have to perform a lift of the abdominal wall,” warns Dr. Plot.
Cost of the operation? At the discretion of the practitioner. One thing is certain, “it is worth more“. First, because the radiofrequency device is expensive and the probe needed for the operation is disposable. But also because “it’s a long and careful treatment, which is done in strips, every centimeter. The operation lasts at least an hour for the belly for example”, explains Dr Plot.
As for the postoperative course? “Super simple”. If the operation does not cause no painaccording to the expert, patients may have a small crackling sensation for 24-48 hours. the wearing a sheath is also recommended, according to the same principle as for liposuction.
The results are not visible for several weeks: “I think we can say that after a month, we see a result, but you really have to wait six months so that the patient can tell himself that he has achieved the result he wanted”, concludes the surgeon.
