Procedure
Studies

Ultherapy® Procedure Overview

During Ultherapy®, micro-focused ultrasound is delivered in a series of lines at 3 discrete tissue depths, including the skin’s foundational layer (SMAS / Platysma) at 4.5mm deep. Each line contains 12-23 Thermal Coagulation Points (TCP’s), spaced approximately 1mm apart to promote healing. A TCP is formed when ultrasound energy is focused to a point below the skin’s surface, concentrating 95% of the delivered energy to an area approximately 1mm3. Tissue at the focal point is heated to ~65°C, causing immediate collagen contraction and initiating aggressive collagen synthesis, while intervening tissue, including the skin’s surface, is unaffected.

Clinical Studies on Ultherapy®

Clinical studies have demonstrated that one Ultherapy® treatment can produce a significant lift without patient downtime. A study published in the AAD Journal in 2010 (1) reported that 90 days after treatment, 89% of subjects had a clinically significant brow lift of 1.9mm on average. Other studies have demonstrated the scientific foundation and safety of micro-focused ultrasound with visualization as a treatment modality. Ulthera is currently investing in over 25 new studies to evaluate all aspects of treatment, including new indications for off-face and medical applications. 

Physician Quotes
"One advantage with Ultherapy® is that you can go deep with ultrasound, which you cannot do with other technologies such as lasers or radio-frequency. In fact, the only wavelength that penetrates that deeply is ultrasound. It’s also a safe, proven technology."

—Daniel Barolet, M.D.,
Dermatologist
"Ultherapy is remarkably consistent in that it regenerates collagen in everybody; in that sense, there are no non-responders."

—Andrew C. Campbell, M.D.,
Facial Plastic Surgeon
"The Ulthera System® represents a completely new category of treatment combining ultrasound visualization of and beneath the skin surface with the delivery of focused thermal coagulation points (TCPs) via ultrasonic energy to the skin and fibromuscular layers."

—Gordon Sasaki, M.D.,
Plastic Surgeon
"I’ve been offering RF skin tightening procedures for the last 9 years. When I learned about Ultherapy, it made sense to treat at a deeper depth than other modalities. Being able to treat at two different levels instead of just one, you would expect the efficacy to be better, and that’s certainly what I’ve found."

—Richard Asarch, M.D.,
Dermatologist
Clinical Papers on Ulthera
  1. Ultrasound tightening of facial neck skin: a rater-blinded prospective cohort study.
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  2. Clinical pilot study of intense ultrasound therapy to deep dermal facial skin and subcutaneous tissues.
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  3. Intense focused ultrasound: evaluation of a new treatment modality for precise microco-agulation within the skin. DOWNLOAD PDF
  4. Selective creation of thermal injury zones in the superficial musculoaponeurotic system using intense ultrasound therapy: a new target for noninvasive facial rejuvenation. DOWNLOAD PDF
  5. Selective transcutaneous delivery of energy to porcine soft tissues using Intense Ultrasound.
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