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No matter how much weight she lost, Tammi Hulton couldn't shrink the fat on her back. So when she heard of a fat-burning treatment that involves no wound care or downtime, she jumped at the chance.
"It smoothed me out completely," said Hulton, 37, of Simi Valley, who saw visible results after undergoing a process that uses radio frequency to burn fat and tighten skin.
"I didn't drop any weight, and this totally smoothed me out. I could tell a difference in the first treatment. ? I couldn't feel the roll anymore."
Hulton is one of about 60 people who undergo Alma Laser treatments by Simi Valley resident Dana Kramer, founder and nursing director of DK Laser Aesthetics Inc.
Kramer is expanding her business, in Northridge at 11167 Tampa Ave., in January to an office two doors down at 11159 Tampa Ave.
She is one of only 130 people in the United States licensed to use the Alma Laser, said Wayne Lura, territory manager for Alma Laser.
With 15 years of nursing experience from labor and delivery to the operating room Kramer treats patients who range in age from 18 to 50-plus. The common goal is to shrink fat and cellulite on stomach, legs, back and buttocks.
Kramer also uses the Alma Laser to diminish double chins and tighten the face for a "surgery free face-lift."
"It's like liposuction without surgery it's fat reduction and skin tightening in the same treatment," said Kramer, 44, who was trained as an assistant in plastic, general and thoracic surgery.
Mark Rubin, assistant clinical professor of dermatology at University of California, San Diego, said he is familiar with the technology, but has never used it.
"There have been some foreign studies recently published showing some positive results with this technology," he said. "The results appear to be variable, as with most noninvasive technologies."
It is important to realize that this treatment might improve cellulite and tighten skin, Rubin added, but it comes nowhere near the result of liposuction or a face-lift.
"Sadly, even with our new technologies, it's still no pain, no gain," he said. "So for someone willing to get more subtle results, but without the downtime or risk of a surgical procedure, this may be worth considering."
Kramer also offers hair removal, microdermabrasion, photodynamic therapy for cystic acne, peels, facials and customized product recommendations.
The Alma Laser, a radio-frequency heating source, "is soon to be FDA approved as the only significant, recognizable, clinical process that produces results," Kramer said.
The laser is expected to get the green light from the Food and Drug Administration "within the next 90 days," Lura said.
In the meantime, Kramer notifies clients that the laser treatment is provided as an "off-label use," meaning the laser is being used outside the scope of its approved purpose.
Designed for aesthetic and cosmetic applications, it is the only system on the market that provides two types of radio frequency technology: UniPolar and Bipolar. This dual radio frequency technology, RF2, provides controlled volumetric tissue heating to two distinct depths of tissue.
It works with up, down and circular motions. Kramer moves the tip of a hand-held device over an area about the size of a spread-out hand, and repeats the process about six times per spot, 30 seconds each time.
The patient feels a different sensation in four phases: cold; a mixture of hot and cold; warm; and hot. Although sometimes uncomfortable, the fourth phase produces the best results.
"The hotter they can take it, the better the results," Kramer said.
Treatment costs can vary depending on the overall size of the area in need. Because most people see the best results with more than one treatment, Kramer recommends packages that start at $1,200 for six treatments.
To further explain the treatment, Kramer offers the visual of a stick of butter liquefying in a microwave.
"The radio waves are melting the fat," she said.
Treatments can create dramatic change without the need for invasive surgery or topical anesthetics. An added benefit is that there is no downtime for the patient.
"It saves you from having to undergo surgery," Kramer said. "You can come in on your lunch break."
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