Cellulite 101.

We are commonly asked about cellulite. The appearance of cellulite is caused by a couple different anatomical features.

The first is from loose skin. It's normal to have connections from the skin to the deeper layers. If this skin is too loose, it will hang causing dimpling. This gives the appearance of cellulite as the skin is essentially hanging from that point. The second is that the skin is tethered by too many and/or too short of those fibrous connections from the deeper layers out to the skin with the interposed fat causing bumps in the skin similar to a depressed button on a throw pillow.

The appropriate solutions for these two problems are predictably different.

For loose skin generally the solution is to cut his skin and do a lift. Depending on the body area this works variably well.

For people that do not have extra skin but have too many shortened connections between the skin and the deeper layers, there is a new solution called Cellulaze. This uses a laser to divide the connections that are dimpling the skin. Some liposuction is done to help even out the fat layers between the skin and the deeper layers.  I have very closely researched this technology and do believe that it is modestly effective. The only problem I found was that it is very expensive. We did a survey of various patients, all of which noted that cellulite was a significant problem and that they would be willing to pay to have a for a procedure to fix it. When they were presented with a series of before-and-after's of Cellulaze treatments as well as the price, only 2% said that they would be willing to proceed. Because of this, we have chosen not to offer the service in our office.

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Recommendations and advice are the result of experience and thoughtful, professional judgment. The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.

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