During Sculpsure treatment, does lowering or increasing the intensity effect how much fat cells it destroys? Or does it matter?

Thank you for your question.  Pain is a very subjective thing - the exact same stimulus may be perceived as painful by one person and totally comfortable by another.  With SculpSure, the company trains its providers to adjust the power levels to the point where the patient feels a little discomfort, but not intolerable - more like a 4 or 5 out of 10 (not 8).  It  may be possible that the settings were as low as they can go and you were still feeling pain.  At my office, we always try to set the power to the point where the patient is at least feeling mild discomfort (2 or 3 out of 10), but occasionally, we have gone up a little more (4-5/10) in the belief that more energy delivered equals better results.  I say "belief," because there are no studies to show that this is true.  With that said, the good news is that you should expect some good results, given your degree of pain.  Pain after treatment is also variable, both from one patient to the next and also from one site to the next.  For example, when we first received our SculpSure device, we, of course, had to try it out on ourselves.  One of my staff did her tummy and also her outer thighs; I did my left abdomen and left love handle (now I'm a little lop-sided, lol).  Well, my love handle hurt quite a bit afterwards - for about a week; but my tummy did not hurt at all.  My staff member had the same experience, only the opposite - her tummy hurt and thigh didn't.  We all had great results though (you can see the photos on our Facebook page, if you're interested - see link, below)!  The point is, some bodies are more sensitive than others and some body parts are more sensitive than others, but from my experience, they all will respond to SculpSure.  It's unfortunate that it hurt you so much, but the silver lining is that you should have a great result - let's hope so!

Thank you for your question. I am disappointed to hear about your discomfort during the procedure. SculpSure is intended to be a painless procedure completed in 25 minutes. I suggest that you next consult in person with a board certified facial plastic surgeon for another treatment. Please also review the video on my page from a SculpSure patient!Best wishes,

SculpSure offers the ability to adjust the settings during treatment.  We expect some discomfort for patients. However, if the pain level was too high, it should have been communicated to your Dr. If you have any concerns, please consult your Dr.  The energy level doesnt typically make much difference in the results if you finish the full course. Best, Dr. Emer

The energy level is adjustable on the SculpSure device, so I would say it should never be painful for anyone.  The effective level is determined by the sensation that the patient feels during the treatment, so if you were experiencing pain, I would have decreased the energy level.  The fat destruction zone should feel like tingly, cramping or periods of deep warmth, but not pain.  

I am sorry that you found the treatment painful. Most don't. But yes, the higher the setting, the better your result. Glad that you are out of discomfort now.