American Academy of Dermatology Discusses New Non-Invasive Skin Tightening Procedure

American Academy of Dermatology Discusses New Non-Invasive Skin Tightening Procedure
August 1, 2007
by Jacob Dauler
Associated Content

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, recent developments in skin-tightening technologies can help give you tighter skin with only a few visits to a dermatologist's office. These procedures are non-invasive and the can treat loose skin on almost any part of the body without the risks and downtime of surgery, says the AAD.

Dr David J Goldberg, MD, JD, FAAD, clinical professor of dermatology and director of laser research at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, NY, talked about the rapidly growing area of skin-tightening techniques and how they can be used safely and effectively to treat sagging skin on the jowls, neck, arms, and stomach, according to the AAD. Dr Goldberg also said that the new techniques can be used to treat cellulite. He spoke today at the American Academy of Dermatology's Summer Academy Meeting 2007.

Dr Goldberg said, "The monopolar radiofrequency (RF) technology... has been the catalyst for what is now an explosion in non-invasive skin tightening with different technologies and area of the body that we can treat," according to the AAD. Monopolar RF technology was introduced five years ago and is credited as being the first non-surgical skin-tightening device. Dr Goldberg says that monopolar RF technology was first used to lift eyebrows, but that it "was found to be effective in tightening the jowls and neck area with its unique approach of cooling the outer layer of skin while hearing the deeper lays to cause tightening." He says that "this basic principle is what shaped many of the latest skin-tightening technologies."

The AAD says that today dermatologists have many broad-spectrum light sources that they can pick from to treat loose skin on the face and body. New devices use a broad band of infrared light to heat the middle layer of skin. This causes new collagen formation over time. The AAD says that this method, like monopolar RF, keeps the outer layer of skin intact with a continuous cooling device. <br><br>Dr Goldberg said that "these new technologies allow us to treat younger and older patients with equal degrees of success," according to the AAD.