Does Using a Numbing Cream Make Ultherapy Less Effective?

Because Ultherapy is focused ultrasound and not a light-based treatment like lasers, it can be focused at a specific depth under the skin. There are 2 levels currently used, 3 and 4.5 millimeters, or between 1/8th and 1/4th of an inch approximately. This is too deep for numbing cream to do any good. However, there are certain areas where injection of a numbing agent can be helpful, such as the lateral forehead.

Thank you for your question. The numbing cream will not make Ultherapy less effective. The treatment utilizes ultrasound technology, which penetrates deep into the skin. The numbing cream will not affect this. Best of luck.

I agree with Dr. Baxter and Dr. Shelton.  Numbing cream will not interfere with Utherapy, but unfortunately, it will also not be helpful as the pain from the procedure is deeper then numbing cream penetrates.  I find that patients tolerate the procedure very well with a combination of toradol and percocet  pills with a small amount of lidocaine injection for the forehead.   

Ultherapy is not a laser. It is focused ultrasound energy that is delivered to the deep tissues. Numbing cream does not penetrate that deeply, and as there is no pain in the epidermis during Ultherapy, just deep dermal pain, the use of numbing cream is not standard. If it were used, and then wiped off immediately prior to the Ulthera, there wouldn't be a dimunition of Ulthera's effectiveness.

Topical anesthetic creams have no effect on the long term or short term efficacy of Ultherapy in terms of energy delivery. 

Not only does numbing cream not interfere with Ulthera, it also is completely un-necessary for the procedure, as it will not change the pain experienced. I recently ran a clinical trial involving numbing cream and it's use in Ulthera, and confirmed this finding. Because numbing cream only penetrates the epidermis (and Ulthera's deepSEE technology works at the dermal level), numbing cream has no effect on the pain level. Instead, discomfort during the procedure is best managed by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents, benzodiazepenes, or mild prescription pain relievers such as hydrocodone. 

Numbing cream does not interfere or reduce the effectiveness of Ultherapy. I have tried all approaches to make Ultherapy tolerable without creating temporary morbidity associated with oral sedation or local anesthesia and I have found that applying a topical anesthetic which we have formulated for us for 30-45 minutes prior to start of treatment makes a significant difference in that I rarely have to use any local anesthetic and I never have to reduce power settings. Skin is permeable and if you are patient and leave the cream on for sufficient period of time, it will penetrate to sufficient depth to make the treatment significantly more tolerable.

Unfortunately, the use of numbing cream prior to an Ultherapy treatment is not effective for pain reduction during the treatment.  However, its use will not affect the procedure. The heat of the ultrasound is directed at specific depths under the skin to cause tightening.  Because of this, a topical numbing agent would not be able to penetrate that deep and therefore it would not work.  Fortunately, there are other ways to help decrease the discomfort one could experience when having a treatment.

Best,

Dr. H