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Red Carpet 'Facelift' A Non-Invasive Choice In Anti-Aging Treatments

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- It's what we call the red carpet "facelift."

Dr. Julio Gallo, medical director at the Miami Institute for Age Management, showed off one of three machines used in the 3D-Facelift - the latest, advanced alternative to surgery to
address every dimension of the face and the effects of aging.

The 3D facelift is an approach to aging and it uses three different energies at three different levels of the skin to maximize production of collagen, elastin, and hyaluronic acid which is the three molecules we lose as we age.

Sixty-year-old Beth Sobel has always taken care of her skin. She's done minor cosmetics procedures such as fillers and Botox. Now, she's decided to try the 3D facelift for a little extra lift.

"I don't want to go into those invasive procedures, that's why every few years I'll do maintenance. There are new procedures that come out and develop, like this one," Sobel said.
"It's completely non-invasive, so I'll come in for a few hours and then I'll go home."

Dr. Gallo performs the three-part procedure in their on-site operating room.

The first part is what is called the profound and this is a radio frequent machine that uses 10 needles. They're bipolar needles and they penetrate the skin at about two meters and the radiofrequency is delivered by the tips of the needles," Dr. Gallo explained.

This stimulates the collagen.

"Then we come up a little bit to the upper dermis to another machine called the sublative and that delivers radio frequency and infrared to the upper level to stimulate collagenases there.
Then, for the superficial skin, we use a CO2 laser to resurface and take away fine lines and resurface the skin," said the doctor.

Gallo had Sobel under a local anesthesia. The entire procedure takes about 90 minutes.

"You do not get the dramatic results as you do with a traditional surgical facelift but for a procedure where you're not having any incisions, you can get a darn good result," said the doctor.

There is some swelling the first few days but patients can go back to work in about a week.

When CBS4's Lisa Petrillo caught up with Sobel two months later, Dr.Gallo was examining her before and after pictures. He asked Sobel if she felt tighter or lifted.

"All of that," she said. "I feel under my chin and cheeks is tighter and lifted. It feels very fresh."

When asked if she would do it all over again, she said, "absolutely! In three years I'll be back!"

The cost of a 3D facelift is about $6,000. Like most cosmetic procedures, it's not covered by insurance. Click here for more information.

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