in 2018, the american society of plastic surgeons reported that there were more than 17.7 million surgical and minimally-invasive cosmetic procedures performed in the united states, with a spike in non-invasive fat reduction, such as body contouring techniques.
what is body contouring?
body contouring encompasses a number of non-surgical procedures that subtly change the shape of the body through either fat reduction or muscle toning technologies. there are a number of fat reduction body contouring technologies on the market now, such as velashape, ultrashape, and the most popular and commonly known, coolsculpting , amongst several others. the latest development in the world of body contouring is emsculpt , which is the first technology of it’s kind to focus on muscle toning. these technologies are minimally invasive (non-surgical; no incisions) and are meant to provide subtle changes to the shape of the body, targeting specific areas that the patient is trying to slim down or tone up.
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how does it work?
the body contouring technologies which focus on fat reduction use either heating or freezing to promote the destruction of fat cells. devices that heat the tissues can become uncomfortable, which often limits the effectiveness of the treatment. whereas with treatments that freeze, patients initially feel the cold, followed by numbness, which is generally well tolerated.
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what are the risks of body contouring and what does it feel like?
the results you can expect
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what does this technology mean for the future?
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dr. rohan bissoondath, md, is the medical director and founder of preventous collaborative health and preventous cosmetic medicine . he is an executive board member of the canadian association of aesthetic medicine and is certified by the college of family physicians of canada and licensed through the college of physicians and surgeons of alberta.