by
Loren Bonner, DOTmed News Online Editor | August 24, 2012
From the August 2012 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
Merolla thinks non-invasive procedures using various tissue-modifying technologies to reduce fat and cellulite are being embraced on a large scale by patient and practitioner alike, especially as they become more clinically validated. In recent years, the FDA has tightened its regulations, asking for more clinical data for device approval, and states have pushed for
more stringent regulation against non-physician operation of devices.
Candidates for body shaping procedures want to reduce excess fat in areas such as the abdomen and flanks, but with less downtime than certain techniques, such as liposuction, which cuts into the body. All the big laser manufacturers, including Palomar, Syneron & Candela, Cynosure, Cutera, and Sciton are marketing products for the non-invasive body contouring market.
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Solta Medical’s Liposonix took almost ten years to come to fruition. The company received FDA clearance for its second-generation system in Oct. 2011. Liposonix uses HIFU to destroy subcutaneous fat in areas of the stomach and sides non-invasively.
“In the past, some of this technology had problems where it became painful [to the patient] because of too much energy and caused damage to the skin. That was mainly in the European trials. Now they’ve really refined it so it’s a much safer method,” says Hruza.
He thinks cryolipolysis, a noninvasive technique that freezes excess fat, has more data to support it than HIFU and is a more attractive option because there are little to no side effects. HIFU can sometimes cause pain in patients afterwards because of the heat it generates.
Two FDA-approved devices, one from Erchonia and the other from Zeltiq, are currently on the market, using this technique to
freeze fat and kill it soon after exposure.
Winners and losers
Sellers and dealers of refurbished lasers and IPLs acknowledge that they might be one of the few to have benefited from a weak economy, with business growing steadily in the past few years.
“If the banks start lending money again the way they used to, I think my used business will slow down,” says Shawn Burkey, president of the Laser Warehouse in Deerfield, Fla. a servicer of most major brands of cosmetic lasers.
