1. CoolSculpting by Zeltiq:
My friend Rehana is 35 years old but looks no more than 25 ! She fits into a size 28 denim but ask her to wear a bikini on a holiday to Miami and she shies away. Rehana wants to wear a bikini but feels she will look horrendous with her big flabby thighs.
Another lady I have been closely watching at the gym is Martha, a 42 year old who never misses a single day of exercise. She weighed 95 kilograms when she joined the gym a year ago but now weighs 68kgs. She follows a strict healthy diet and works out for an hour every single day of the week. But her challenge now is her belly fat. No matter what she does, this paunch does not leave her. She is so harassed as she longs to get into slim fit gowns but cannot.
My cousin Rathish too has paunch issues all the time.
Rehana, Martha & Rathish have one thing in common. They do not want to go under the knife. The word liposuction scares them for some reason.
Well, the wait is over for them and for all such people. If you have limited fat on your abdomen, flanks, back or thighs and are struggling to lose it, if you have fat which just doesn’t seem to go inspite of a strict diet & exercise program, if you want that tummy to be a tad slimmer so you can fit into waist 24 instead of waist 28, you can close your eyes and opt for Coolsculpting .
CoolSculpting by Zeltiq is a noninvasive body contouring device which freezes and destroys small volumes of fat. This technology is called cryolipolysis.
Hell, how can you freeze fat which lies deep under the skin, you’d be wondering. But its true. According to research studies, when you get a frost bite, the fat freezes before the skin freezes. Cryolipolysis works exactly the same way. The “frozen fat” dies and is drained by the lymphatic system of the body over time.

How does it work ?
A specially designed cooling applicator is applied to the desired area of fat reduction. The applicator cup uses a gentle vacuum pressure to draw the tissue between the cooling panels. During the procedure, the applicator delivers precisely controlled cooling conditions that freeze fat cells. The cooling triggers a natural process that on average reduces the layer of fat by 25%. Because the body process to digest fat cells is gradual, there are no harmful effect on the liver or kidney.
In the weeks & months to follow, your body naturally processes & remove the treated fat cells. Once the fat cells are gone, they are gone for good.

Does that mean you are sorted once you have done a single session?
Err…not exactly ! One or more treatments may be needed depending upon the amount of fat to be eliminated. So while Rehana would need a single session, Martha would probably need two.

How do you know if all the money you have spent on coolsculpting is not going down the drain ?
First of all, this is not a weight loss treatment. Coolscupting as the name suggests is meant for sculpting the body. You will find that you have lost inches from the area that has been treated. It is best suited for treating limited volumes of fat in the abdomen, flanks, love handles, thighs, upper and lower back, flabby arms.
If one falls into the category of “obese”, surgery is a better option.
Now you must be wondering whether the fat comes back after you have had the treatment and lost inches. Your concern is genuine but the good thing is that the results are permanent. Why ? Because an adult body does not produce new fat cells. When you gain weight, your existing fat cells expand. Once fat cells are destroyed and removed from the body, you will not gain weight in the treated areas. But you better watch your diet coz you can have new fat bulges in other areas if you binge or eat junk food or a lot of sugar.

What are the area that can be treated ?
• Abdomen (small paunch)
• Flanks (Love handles)
• Arms (Bingo wings)
• Thighs (thunder thighs)
• Upper back (Bra bulge)
• Lower back (Muffin top)

What are the side effects ?
Temporary redness, tingling, tenderness may be present for a day. The patient may feel a little cramp like discomfort for 2- 3 days in the area treated.
No permanent side effects have been seen.

What are the benefits ?
You don’t have to go under the knife. It is purely non surgical.
You do not need to be admitted to a hospital.
The treatment gets over in 2 or 3 hours depending on the number of areas treated. You can watch TV, work on your IPad , read a book or even play Candy crush on your phone while the treatment is going on.
There is no need of any anaesthesia.
There is no after care except for maintaining a healthy diet regime.
One may need one to three treaments depending on the amount of fat.
It is a US FDA approved treatment and is extremely safe.

What are the disadvantages ?
It is expensive.
The face and double chin cannot be treated.
Obese people with a lot of fat will not respond.
Who should not be opting for coolsculpting treatment ?
Those who are very obese or have any of the following should not opt for coolsculpting.
• Cryoglobulinemia or paroxysmal cold hemoglobinuria.
• Known sensitivity to cold such as cold urticaria or Raynaud’s disease. Neuropathic disorders such as post-herpetic neuralgia or diabetic neuropathy.
• Recent surgery or scar tissue in the area to be treated.
• An existing hernia or history of hernia in the area to be treated.
• Pregnancy or lactation.
• Any active implanted devices such as pacemakers and defibrillators

How is Coolsculpting different from Ultrasound devices such as Ultrashape & Liposonix which are also used to reduce fat non surgically ?
According to some renowned doctors in the US who have had a good experience with both the technologies , Cryolipolisis is safer than Ultrasound cavitation & very effective too. Ultrasound cavitation creates perforations in fat cells. A portion of the lipids found within the fat cells are expelled and are gradually eliminated through the lymphatic system. Coolsculpting goes beyond perforation of the cells. In one application, 20-25% of the fat cells in the treatment area are crystalized through a process known as cryolipolysis. The process destroys all the fat cells and they are eliminated gradually through the lymphatic system.
So the wait is over and you dont need to whine about those really stubborn pockets of fat. The one technology that we were all waiting for has finally arrived !!

2. Fat Lipolysis:
What is lipolysis?
Lipolysis is an innovative gentle non-surgical method to remove accumulation of fat deposits in specific regions of the body. It is one of the safest methods for removing double chin, and fat around the waist, inner thigh and abdomen, under the upper arms, knees and ankles. It is also an extremely effective method for combating cellulite. Lipolysis is used to improve the effects of dieting and exercise.

Which parts of the body are the most common for lipolysis application?
Lipolysis is commonly used on parts of the body that can’t be adequately shaped with persistent trainings or diet. Usually those are thighs, buttocks, hips, stomach and chin.

Who is eligible?
People who want to remove small to medium size fat pockets in targeted areas of the body, but don’t want to undergo surgery.

Who cannot go for lipolysis?
Pregnant or breastfeeding women, as well as people allergic to soy, people with stroke histories or those who recently recovered from cancer, and people with blood clotting history, as well as those on heart disease medication, should not consider the treatment.

What are the outcomes?
The results vary according to the patient’s age, skin type, weight and lifestyle. Some people see results immediately, whereas others notice a gradual change over a period of weeks or months.
Since Lipolysis is effective in dissolving surplus fat and helping the body to block fat storage the results are permanent.
People who are committed to a healthy lifestyle of regular exercise and a balanced diet should experience long term improvement.

How is lipolysis done?
A lipolysis treatment consists of lipolytic (sodium deoxycholate, kybella) application with microinjections directly into the fatty tissue of the treated region. The procedure of the lipolytic application itself is painless but after 15 minutes of the application a sense of itching, redness and swelling of the treated region appears. After two hours redness and pain disappear and the swelling can last up to two weeks after the treatment. In the next 6 to 8 weeks there is some sensitivity when the treated fatty tissue is pressed. The treatment effect is observed one month after the application and the final effect comes after two months.

How long does the treatment take?
The gentle procedure takes less than 30 minutes.

Is there an advantage to lipolysis compared to liposuction?
Yes. The advantage of lipolysis compared to liposuction is that bumps and fibrosis can’t appear on the treated parts of the body, if the lipolytic is adequately applied.
How many treatments are required?
Patients committed to a healthy lifestyle and regular water replenishment should experience permanent results between 1 and 3 treatments to a targeted area are recommended at intervals between 2 and 6 weeks depending on the patients response to treatment

What is post procedure care?
Since it is a non-invasive procedure, patients can return to work immediately after the treatment although hot showers and baths should best be avoided for eight hours after treatment.
Patients should refrain from excessive exercising and massages for the first week after treatment. Three days after the treatment, massages and the usual exercises may begin. It is recommended to drink from 1.5 to 2 liters of fluids a day.

What are side effects?
It is a relatively painless procedure although patients may experience discomfort from the initial injection pricks. Light swelling, redness and a burning sensation may be experienced at the targeted areas for one to four days. Light bruises will disappear in a week. If a person has a low pain threshold it is recommended that the patient take a light pain killer after the treatment.

Is the lipolysis treatment permanent?
The effect is permanent in persons who do not gain weight again. There is a loss of 1 to 10 cm in volume depending on the treated region. About 6% of the population doesn’t adequately react to phosphatidylcholine and so in these patients the effect is reduced.