New technology, which uses plasma (lightening) energy to flatten wrinkles or treat facial scars, is set to revolutionise the way cosmetic and aesthetic surgery is performed.
Now doctors are in a position to perform these conventional surgeries without any wounds, blood or stitches.
The new Plexr machine, which was introduced locally earlier this year, shrinks and evaporates excess skin tissue without affecting deeper layers of skin.
Instead of cutting deep into the skin to perform “soft surgeries” such as eye lift, keloid or wart removal and elimination of tattoos, dermatologists and aesthetic doctors now use the less invasive and versatile technology to vaporise excess skin without transferring unwanted heat or damaging the unaffected tissue.
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Dr Johan Botha, the distributor of the Italian technology, who also trains local doctors to use the device, said while the equipment was widely used in most European countries, it is the first device of its kind in the country.
Procedures that it corrects are mainly faster treatments with minimal downtime such as flattening of wrinkles, removal of acne scars, keloids, fibromas and permanent expression lines.
One of the most notable Plexr treatments is the non-surgical eye-lift, or blepharoplasty.
An eye-lift can take years off someone’s face, but because of the surgical risks involved, it is an aesthetic concern often left untreated, said Botha.
While the procedures Plexr performed were still referred to as “surgery”, the difference is that unlike conventional surgery this technology does not cut through the skin.
With its precise tip, Plexr delivers lightening energy to the outermost layer of the skin.
It uses the difference in voltage between the device and a person's skin to generate a small electrical arch or plasma discharge.
The energy was applied so superficially it did not leave any wounds, except a dark mark on the skin, which later cleared up.
Additional to its benefit of not creating scarring, the plasma energy also benefited the user by boosting collagen formation under the skin through radicals that were produced.
Doctors who were using the device expressed delight in using the new technology, citing low risk, cost and downtime as advantages.
Pretoria aesthetic practitioner Dr Bianca Cowan said instant results were seen by patients.
Plexr has allowed me to treat patients that I would previously have had to refer for surgical intervention, she said.
The equipment, which is licensed by the Department of Health, is often used in normal doctor's rooms and can be used by general practitioners who are trained in aesthetics.