Ultherapy in Woodbury

A new non-surgical option offered by two Woodbury doctors helps ‘reverse’ aging.

By: Dan Emerson | From the issue: April 2011

As a 48-year old woman hoping to retain a youthful look, Sherri Overstreet has had an avid interest in cosmetic products and procedures that might reduce her facial wrinkles. “I've been constantly searching for the next 'miracle' eye cream,” she says.

About a year ago, the Woodwinds Hospital secretary heard about a new, non-surgical and rejuvenating procedure called ultherapy offered by two Woodbury physicians, Christopher Tolan, M.D., and Joseph Campanelli, M.D. The doctors are both partners in Midwest Facial Surgery and Aesthetic Skin Care, currently the only facial plastic surgery clinic offering the procedure in Minnesota.

In March, Overstreet underwent the ultherapy procedure which uses ultrasound energy to treat tissue below the skin surface, resulting in firming, tightening and lifting of skin tissue over a several-month period. The outpatient procedure, performed at the Woodbury clinic across the street from the hospital—which normally takes one hour—only took about a half hour, so she was able to stop in day and have it done after work.

Ultherapy produced the desired results, gradually tightening the skin and softened wrinkles around Overstreet’s eyes. Her case is one example of the rapid evolution of non-surgical, aesthetic skin care, a field which has been transformed by new technology.

The major change in the field—which non-physicians often refer to as “plastic surgery”—has been a shift away from reliance on “significant surgical procedures as the only option to maintain a more youthful appearance,” says Tolan. “As we all have gotten older, we're looking for ways to maintain our overall appearance and health, and do so with minimally invasive procedures or techniques. The biggest change has been the advent of technologies that help us be 'less surgical' but obtain the same results.”

Botox injections were the first major non-surgical innovation in the field, starting in the early ’90s. “Botox has been a mainstay in a majority of aesthetic practices,” Tolan says. “A lot of technology has been poured into an effort to create results using non-drastic techniques and with pretty minimal risk.” Another key benefit of the laser-based technology is the ability to target the pigment or blood vessels, using the wavelength that will give the best treatment, rather than taking a “shotgun” approach, Tolan says.

The most common skin-related flaws Tolan and Campanelli treat are fine lines, wrinkles and brown spots, followed by laxity of the skin or depressions. “Not every option is ideal for each patient, so matching the technique to the patient is important,” Tolan says. “Having a variety of options available to the person who comes in looking to improve is what we're looking for.”

Most aesthetic skin care patients are in the 30- to 80-year old range, says Tolan. And there has been a “slowly increasing” number of men considering appearance-enhancement.

A full-face ultherapy treatment costs about $3,500 compared to a surgical facelift which normally costs $8,000 or more. Since they began doing the procedure in mid-April, Tolan and Campanelli have done about 40 procedures.”A majority of our patients have noticed an improvement,” Tolan says. “With some, we may do a little re-treatment.”

Overstreet was happy with her results, particularly the “subtle change, nothing drastic” that she was looking for. She also appreciated the relatively low cost of the procedure, minimal pain and the lack of downtime which accompanies facial surgery.

Looking to the future, “We don't believe ultherapy is going to replace surgical management, but it’s a great tool for a person who doesn’t have a lot of downtime—someone that can't be away from work for 10 to14 days,” Tolan says. “They may not be interested in surgical management; they’re just looking for an overall, refreshed appearance. “

As medical science continues to advance, physicians and their patients will have more options to reverse the effects of aging, beyond facial surgery, Tolan says. “We’re all still striving to find the least invasive procedures that give us the best bang for the buck with minimal or no ‘downtime.’ Having a variety of arrows in our quiver is very helpful.”

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