CoolLipo helps melt the fat away

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Over the years, local real estate agent Sara Kreuttz watched the pounds creep on. Like many women, Kreuttz found herself battling extra pockets of fat, which she admits made her self concious about her body.

"I like to wear short sleeves, so when I see my arms that are just a little bigger, 'Aah!'" exclaims Kreuttz.

Kreuttz visited the office of Dr. Steven Hopping, the director of DC's Center for Cosmetic Surgery, looking for a dramatic and targeted change.

To help tighten up Kreuttz's arms with minimal scarring, Dr. Hopping recommended what he calls one of the newest additions to the Liposuction family: CoolLipo.

The CoolLipo technology, as Dr. Hopping explained, "...is a machine which uses a very fine milimeter laser fiber. It evaporates the fat. More importantly, it encourages skin tightening by delivering heat on the inner surface of the skin."

The heat helps to "shrink wrap" the skin as it tightens, which is the key to resculpting a part of the body. CoolLipo uses a disposable laser fiber to liquify fat for easy removal through a small tube. The laser energy also reduces the bleeding and bruising. It works best on smaller pockets of fat, such as on the arms, under the chin and on the abdomen.

"You lose girth with liposuction, not weight. But it does provide patients an incentive to go ahead and hit the gym and watch what they eat," Dr. Hopping said.

Most patients will see improved skin tightening and sculpting, but Dr. Hopping says he's gotten the best results in women who've had children, those with stretch marks and those who have recently lost weight. CoolLipo's most visible benefit seems to be in the tightening of sagging skin.

Kreuttz said, "I feel fabulous and happy," and is very pleased with her results.

The cost for CoolLipo varies, but it generally costs around $200 to $300 more than traditional liposuction. The additional costs covers the laser and the disposable CoolLipo laser fiber.

The cost of the liposuction procedure on the arms is around $3,500 and the recovery time is estimated at around 2 to 3 days.

As a cosmetic procedure, it is not covered by health insurance.

For more information on CoolLipo, visit http://www.cooltouch.com/Lipolysis.aspx.

To find out more about Dr. Steven Hopping and the Center for Cosmetic Surgery, visit http://www.center4cosmeticsurgery.com/.