If You Did Not Bruise/swell Much After Ultherapy, Will Results Be As Good?

Dear patient, You do not need to get swelling or bruising for great Ulthera results. Bruising is exceedingly rare. Most of my patients just feel tenderness and soreness for a few days after the procedure.

There is no correlation between the development of bruising and swelling after Ultherapy and the degree of improvement to be expected.  Although both can occur, the onset of each is highly variable and not linked to the clinical result.

Bruising is not an indicator of success with the procedure.  We customize the treatment to accentuate collagen formation in the areas of fascial laxity.  Bruising is sometimes seen near the jowls. Raffy Karamanoukian, Los Angeles

Whether or not someone bruises with Ultherapy is not an indication of potential results. Some patients will bruise because they take a lot of blood thinning supplements. Others will bruise and swell simply because they have skin that reacts to heat more strongly.

You still might see some bruising even after 2 days as the treatment focal depth is quite deep in the skin.

The ultrasound energy depth is predetermined by the system and the "tip" that is used. The 4.5 mm is the one that reaches most deeply with a 3 mm and optional 1.5 mm that address more superficial levels and skin texture.

 

Bruising is rare and is definitely not a prerequisite for a good result with Ultherapy for facial lifting.  Swelling does occur in some patients more than others, but to-date there is no scientifically proven approved concept that significant swelling is needed for a good result with ultherapy.  Many of my patients who did receive a very good result from Ulthreapy did not have significant swelling. The use of the superficial 1.5mm. deep transducer may help tighten fine lines but may cause more swellling.

Although there is inherent variability in response to nonsurgical treatments such as Ultherapy, I have not noticed any correlation to swelling or bruising as it relates to long-term results. It relates more to the skin's ability to rebuild collagen, which diminishes with age. With 600 lines it sounds like you had a thorough treatment.

There has been no proven correlation between bruising/swelling and
having a successful treatment. Most patients experience mild tenderness to
the touch post treatment for a few days to a few weeks.

How much you swell & bruise after the procedure is not
correlated with how effective it was or the level of result you will have. This
is dependent on many factors. Some people will bruise and swell more just due to
the individual response to trauma. Thinner skin, lighter skin, if you’ve been
taking blood thinners (aspirin, ibuprofen, or vitamins & supplements). Also, If
there was excessive or greater physical activity after the procedure, a person will swell more. If the individual
slept lying flat or face down, it will swell more. So I would not be concerned.
Most of our male patients have much less bruising and swelling after the
procedure, likely because of thicker, more tolerant skin.

Ultherapy success is not associated with bruising - as a matter of fact, bruising and swelling is trivial with Ultherapy in trained hands. So, not having bruising or swelling does NOT mean that you will not see clinical benefit after this procedure. 

Bruising and swelling is very rare after Ultherapy. In our practice, patients who bruise are usually the ones who request anesthetic nerve blocks to block the pain and that is what causes their bruising, not the Ultherapy. Some swelling can occur after Ultherapy but it is generally mild. There is no connection between the amount of swelling or bruising and the final result. Ultherapy works on the tissue under the skin and stimulates collagen and creates tightening. It does not disrupt the blood vessels or the lymphatic system in a way that should cause significant bruising.