A new device that uses a focused ultrasound could help people slim down in 2015.
The same technology used to crush kidney stones is now being used to take away layers of fat.
“It might get a little bit warm it’s not uncomfortable, it’s not painful it doesn’t hurt afterward there’s no downtime,” said Vickie Smith, a patient who received the treatment called “ultrashape.”
Smith works for Dr. Lydia Parker and was one of the first patients to try the treatment a month ago.
After three treatments that were two weeks apart, she lost nearly two inches in circumference, she said.
Smith’s fat was bunched up with straps, and then the technician set the target points and followed the machine like a video game, zapping each dot with a pulse point of ultrasound.
“We’re shattering fat cells, we’re killing them, we’re destroying them, they’re gone and they’re permanently gone,” said Dr. Lydia Parker of the Parker Skin & Aesthetic Clinic.
The machine blasts holes in the fat layer and eventually causes it to collapse on itself.
“The weight will redistribute in other places, but you’ll always be relatively thinner there,” if you regain weight, said Dr. Parker.
As for the fat, your body absorbs it and eliminates it naturally in the restroom, which Smith said were frequent visits at first.
The machine was developed in Israel and has been around for eight years.
“I though it was awesome, I mean obviously it’s a jump start – you still need to exercise and watch what you eat, but, I mean, if you want to jump start your workout program for the beginning of the new year… why not?” said Smith.
The ultrashape is FDA approved to treat abdominal fat, but soon new devices will be approved to treat other parts of the body. The drawback is the cost, which depends on the size of the area to be treated. It costs a minimum of $3,000 to start, and patients must have at least an inch of fat.