A Must Read Before Undergoing Radiofrequency Skin Tightening Wrinkles, sagging skin, and fine lines are some of the most common problems that come with age. They can also be caused by other factors like sun exposure, genetics, and using the wrong products on the skin. The skincare industry has come up with many ways to try and reduce those effects or delay them.
What Is Radiofrequency Skin Tightening?
There are a lot of skincare products and procedures that have been developed. Among those procedures is radiofrequency skin tightening. This is a non-invasive anti-aging procedure that uses a current of electrodes from a radiofrequency device. The procedure targets tissues under the outer layer of the skin, also known as the dermis.
Collagen and elastin are some of the chemicals in the skin that ensures that the skin remains tight and smooth. These chemicals reduce from the skin with age, causing wrinkles, saggy skin, and fine lines. The electrodes from the machine produce heat, between 122 and 1670F.
When that heat touches the skin, it makes the body produce heat-shock proteins that promote new collagen production, encouraging your skin to become tighter and younger. RF also triggers fibroplasia, a process through which the body develops new fibrous tissues. It also helps produce collagen and makes collagen fibers shorten and become tighter.
What Does The Procedure Address
- Sagging skin on the face and under the chin.
• Crow’s foot.
• Nasolabial folds.
• Lines and wrinkles on the forehead.
• Folds and lines between the eyebrows.
• How to prepare for the procedure
• Sagging skin and bugs under the eyes.
Where Can RF Be Used?
Unlike other anti-aging treatments, RF is not only used on the face. It can be used on other parts of the body like;
- Abdomen, Buttocks, and thighs- RF is used to tone and tighten the skin on those body parts after pregnancy or after weight loss.
• Arms- RF tightens skin on the lower and upper arms, but you may need several appointments before you can see the results.
• Knees- RF on the knees should be done with a lot of care because the skin is thin and also because of the low levels of sebaceous glands.
Who Is A Good Candidate?
RF skin rejuvenation is good for anybody who wants to make their skin look younger and tighter without undergoing any surgery. The patients have to be 18 years and above and be in good health. It is also good for people of all skin tones and types because it bypasses the melanin pigment on the skin.
Your doctor examines your skin and health condition to determine if you will benefit from the procedure or if you need another procedure. This procedure is not recommended for people who have rosacea. That is because the heat from the procedure will worsen the inflammation and redness on the skin. It is also not recommended for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding.
How To Prepare For The Procedure
Before going in for the procedure, ensure that you wash off any products you may have on your face. Since it is not a surgical procedure, you are not restricted to what you should and should not eat or drink.
RF Skin Rejuvenation Procedure
Unlike some medical anti-aging procedures, RF is not a painful procedure. It is also a short procedure that will only last between 30 minutes and 1 hour. It is done using a handheld gadget that emits the radio waves to your skin at frequencies between 0.3 and 10MH. This procedure also does not require the use of anesthesia.
The first thing the doctor does is applying a numbing cream to your face to help ensure that the procedure is comfortable and to avoid any type of sensitivity. That is followed by a cream to ensure that the gadget slides smoothly over the skin. During the procedure, your skin temperature is measured.
That ensures that it is not too hot to damage your skin or too cold that the procedure fails to work. The heat from the device is all you will feel during the procedure. RF is usually only done on the parts of the skin that have wrinkles, lines, or saggy skin, but you can also have it all over the skin.
How Many Sessions Do You Need?
Depending on the results you want and how many wrinkles, lines, or saggy skin you have, you may need multiple sessions to see the results.
The collagen produced increases after every session, ensuring that by the end of all your sessions, your skin produces enough collagen to keep your skin tight. Those sessions are spaced a few days or weeks apart.
After the procedure, you may notice a little change on your skin. However, collagen takes some time to be produced, meaning that you will have to wait for some time to also see the results.
What To Expect After The Procedure
Since RF is a non-invasive anti-aging procedure, there is no downtime or recovery time required. You can go back to your daily activities as soon as you have the procedure. Some of the side effects that you may have after the procedure include;
- Pain- The pain of the procedure is rated on a scale of 0-5, where 0 represents no pain, and 5 represents a lot of pain—most of the patients who undergo the procedure rate the pain at a 1.
• Edema- This is swelling of the skin, but it is normally minimal.
• Erythema- This is usually the redness of the skin on the areas where the procedure was carried out.
• Skin tenderness.
These side effects are normally minimal and do not last for more than 24 hours after the procedure. You will see the results of the procedure after a few weeks, which will continue to improve over time. That is because collagen production takes time, and the more sessions you have, the more collagen production.
The results of this procedure can last for at least six months, which means that to keep your skin looking young and tight, you need to go for more sessions in the future. Depending on your skin condition and the results you want, your doctor will determine how many sessions you need and how far apart they should be.
How To Take Care Of The Skin After The Procedure
After the procedure, you should take good care of your skin to ensure that the results last longer. Some of the things you should do include;
- Avoid using harsh products on it.
• Avoid washing it with hot water because that removes all the natural oils, making your skin dry and damaged.
• Moisturizing your skin and protecting it from the sun
• Washing it often. You should also exfoliate after a while but do not exfoliate to avoid stripping off the natural oils.
Cost
Because you will need multiple sessions to get the results that you want, it means that RF skin rejuvenation is not a cheap anti-aging alternative. In many places, the cost of the procedure can be as high as $500 per session at some places. The price of the procedure differs depending on;
- Your skin condition
• How many sessions you will need for your desired results
• The area of skin you want to be covered.
• The doctor you choose
Benefits
While the main benefit of RF skin rejuvenation is tightening the skin, there are other benefits, including;
Reverses sun damage- Too much exposure to the sun causes the UV rays to break down and disorganize collagen fibers, which causes the skin to age. Undergoing RF skin rejuvenation treatment for about three months can reverse that effect of sun damage.
Face and body contouring- Undergoing RF treatment on the face or any part of the skin not only helps tighten the skin but also helps improve the shape of both the body and the face.
Face slimming- RF anti-aging treatment can be used as a non-surgical face slimming tool. The natural face contouring that comes from the treatment makes the face appear slimmer. It also helps slim the face because all the saggy and loose skin on the face makes it look swollen and fat. Therefore, getting rid of it shows the natural slim size of the face.
No reaction to the skin- The only effects that you will get from this treatment are mild redness, tingling, and swelling. Since there are no chemicals used during the procedure, there are no chances of your face reacting to those chemicals.
Non-Invasive- Since RF anti-aging treatment does not require any surgery, there will be no scars after the treatment. Also, you will not have to take time off your daily activities to heal. You can do that as soon as you leave the office.