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Thermage hype or reality?

By panda200 on 10 Feb 2010

I was talking to my doctor and he said that thermage is a bunch of bunk. I was hoping someone(s) could give more about their experience and guide me on whether I'm getting good information from my doctor.

View 15 doctor answers to If Thermage is So Great, How Come People Say They Don't See Results?

Comments (209)

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charlotte 29 Nov 2006

I would like to know if anyone has had laser with the TITAN laser, and if there was any improvement after the procedure.  I have heard that Thermage doesn't  work, but I'm wondering if the TITAN laser is any different.  I would greatly appreciate any comments.

 

Suze (unregistered guest) 11 May 2007
I tried Titan right before my wedding last year, and can't tell you if it worked or not, which I suppose means it didn't work too well. However, I only tried one session, and I'm not that loose in the face. For my money, I wouldn't repeat.
guest (unregistered guest) 24 May 2007
studies show thermage is more effective with ONE treatment vs Titan's 3 to 4 treatments. Thermage is NOT a laser...it uses radio waves instead of light. Titan simply is a superficial toy compared the Thermage
bonnnie (unregistered guest) 23 Sep 2007
i had the titan series. i did not see any improvement tho they took before and after pictures, at different angles. what i have noticed 2 years later is that my skin has aged remarkably fast. i feel like it damages the skin to build collagen, but ....that it really does damage the skin. have they done any long term monitoring to know if it does? all the results i have read on it the women say they lost the fullness to their face, which later makes it look older. whether it damages muscle tissue of depletes fat i don't know, but i do not recommend it.
Marsha5303 30 Mar 2012
I had Thermage for droopy upper eyelids. I can tell you it does not work at all!!!
Dianna (unregistered guest) 15 Dec 2006
Ok- I am not a doctor and this is only my opinion.  If your doctor is a dermatologist than they are FOR thermage.  If your doctor is a plastic surgeon- they say it does not work and believe that you can only improve sagging skin from cuttting it away and tightening the muscles- aka facelift. 
So, I went to a dermatologist.  my experience has been that it does work.  I have minimally sagging skin, some wrinkles that I fill with Restylane 2 to 3 times a year, depending on my budget.  I had thermage on my eye area and definetly see improvement. 
Dottie 712 19 Mar 2008
May i ask how old you were at the time you had it done? REason being Im in my 60's and I feel that the sagging jowls and neck are bad.
puzzle (unregistered guest) 25 Mar 2008
Hallo Dottie 712, my wife was hardly damaged by a Thermage procedure here in Germany in Dec. 2006 and every day brings new results. Beside this certified Dr. in Germany other Thermage certified Drs. say after 50 years Thermage dont work - it is a too high risk. Another reason absolute not doing Thermage in the face is a small face. Both facts the "lying" Dr. did not gegard. He (study and experience with Th in USA) promised no side effects!
puzzle (unregistered guest) 15 Apr 2008
Excuse me: "hardly" is the absolute wrong word. Severely damaged (fat loss, deep dents, problems with the teeth and eyes) is correct.
shana (unregistered guest) 21 Apr 2008
And what is this percentage of "Severly damaged" side affects? I believe it is around .05%, and was due to being treated incorrectly. This is less of a percentage of side affects than TYLENOL. Problems with teeth and eyes? Explain please, I have heard nothing of the sort. I had Thermage done two and a half years ago and was/am ecstatic with the results. I am getting it done again in a few months.
r.s. (unregistered guest) 24 Apr 2008
I've been wanting to get this done for 2-3yrs but can't afford to waste the money. So many comments on here say its not worth it. You say you were very happy with the results. How old are you and who did your thermage? I think it makes a difference in the doctor you use. Then, some people say age has something to do with the results?? I do not want to go under the knife, I am 62 and have High BP. Hope you can answer my questions. Thanks
puzzle 25 Apr 2008
We both (over 60) were treatet and damaged! This must be unusual and it seems the Doc made a lot of mistakes. He said he can not see a reason - he has treated correct... I am waiting for his explanations to our attorney. Than I will report here.
James E. White, MD 27 Apr 2008
Would like to see photographs of the damage--please share to educate the public.
View answers from James E. White, MD
puzzle 30 Apr 2008
We have just received a letter from the Doc`s attorney. We never have seen such a lot of lies. Whats my wife concerns you can find a detailed report to "Thermage problems"- outcoming in march 2008 on a FDA page. Thermage USA provides a lot of useful informations but some Doc's think they are well informed enough without the experience of others. Interesting is a report from Thermage USA that in 2002 an 2003 6% of the praktioneers. caused 100% of the damages! I hope this is the correct page: http://www.medicalspamd.com/display/ShowJournal?moduleId=182618&categoryId=38416 In the medicalspamd you can also find helpful detailed informations from "Midwest" to the > efficacy of the Thermage procedure based on 300 treated persons. I also placed their a short report with my thoughts about the bone density.
javiorly 25 Apr 2012

thermage does what it does well when it works well. It makes the face smaller and the skin thicker through collagen synthesis stimulation. Many people are disappointed because they didn't get what they expected and fail to notice what they did get. When it works well and that is lately better than 50% of the time, it is worthwhile but expensive. That is not to say that thermage is necessarily the best skin tightening treatment there is. It may be that this is not so. 62 is not the ideal age but it may be alright. You are right at the border or just past it. I works really well in younger men I find. 40 or 50. It isn't a swindle. it does change things positively in most cases. There are 3 components to cosmetic treatments, filling, lifting, and tightening. People have lifting expectations that thermage cannot fulfill, it is a tightener. It is best used together with lifting and filling procedures

Megan P (Community Manager) 26 Apr 2012

Good info javiorly, thanks for posting this.

hilde 27 Apr 2012
it even did not tightened in my case, everything became loose due to THE FATLOSS, and whaw that's exactly for what they advertise it now, fatloss on the body, they probably discovered that with the damage they have done to my face and of many others, @javiorly, did you had thermage to tighten your facial skin???? Or is this again some form of SPAM of someone who has the machine and has to pay it off. yes, i see now, you recently became a member of this site, well, well...
Megan P (Community Manager) 27 Apr 2012

Hilde, not everyone's experience will be the same. Please be respectful of others who share their opinions.

Olive56 29 Apr 2012
You say it only works half the time and you think that is not a swindle? People are paying $3000 for a full face treatment. Half of those people are out $3000 -that's a lot of money. I think if their physicians told them that up front thermage would not be around today.
Stacy F. (unregistered guest) 22 Dec 2006
panda - I decided not to get thermage. My problem with it was that the before and after pictures never look that impressive. IMO they show really little difference. On top of this the doctor I talked to about thermage told me it may be less effective on some people than others. in other words no guarantees! hardly worth thousands of dollars i got quoted. -stacy
shana (unregistered guest) 21 Apr 2008
Just an FYI...Thermage is NOT a facelift. It is considered to be a subtle change in some/dramatic in others. It is NON INVASIVE which means that there is no cutting of the skin and no downtime. It is for those who want to look refreshed, not tightened as if they had extreme surgery....
dannie (unregistered guest) 22 Jan 2007
Thermage is so over-hyped! I will never forgive oprah for pushing it. Does she have a contract with them? I have 4 girl friends who spent $3-4K on thermage sessions and NOT ONE of them feels it made a difference. that's not at all what you hear about from doctors who sell it. the best thing to do is bite the bullet and get a mini-facelift or neck lift. proven to make a big difference. d.
Patti chacon (unregistered guest) 9 Feb 2007
I agree totally! I also had the Thermage in 09/06 and I did get some improvement on my wrinkles around the eyes but I don't know if it was Thermage or my dermabrasions and chemical peels that also helped so, I can't say for sure it was Thermage that took the wrinkles away. I WOULD NOT DO IT AGAIN! I have decided to bite the bullet and get a lower face lift with a board certified plastic surgeon. Since my Thermage I see the jowels sagging even more than before. I don't know if its from the Thermage or I am just aging more. I also didn't think it was worth it but I don't have regrets since I did see some results around my eyes.
guest (unregistered guest) 24 May 2007
Your gf's were not appropriately consulted and their expectations were out of whack. Thermage clearly works, it's solid science however ANY non-invasive procedure cannot guarentee results - not even surgery.
Louise Tubbergen (unregistered guest) 5 Jul 2007
I have already booked to have thermage done but im now starting to doubt that it works, I am only 28 but have used sun-beds for years and recently my skin has started to sag and i also have alot of lines and wrinkles, It is making me so depressed and im desperate to have something done about it, Do you think i am too young to have a mini face lift?

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