Zerona

Zerona continues to be one of the most popular body contouring and sculpting procedures around. It can effectively remove excess fat, improve contours and tone up the skin without invasive surgery, making it an attractive alternative to liposuction. Recently featured on "The Dr. Oz Show" (May 16, 2011), Dr. Oz hailed Zerona, calling it a “miracle” procedure. The Zerona system offers patients the results of a body scultping procedure without the surgery, pain, incision wounds, marks, compression garments or other side-effects.

Introduced in April 2008, the Zerona system uses a low-level laser to target excess body fat that may be resistant to diet, exercise and lifestyle changes. The FDA-approved Erchnoia laser used by the Zerona system has been approved for use in use for laser-assisted liposuction since in 2004. The laser's energy is absorbed by body fat, which is broken down and passed through the body as the body naturally detoxifies itself.

While the Zerona laser has little to no reported side-effects, one of the reported benefits is the ongoing loss of days and weeks after treatment as the excess, broken-down fat is passed through the body. A study by the American Society of Lasers in Medicine and Surgery in 2008 demonstrated that patients lost an average of 5-6 inches from their waists, hips and thighs over the course of a few weeks of treatment. A healthy diet and continued exercise is always necessary to keep the weight off with any body contouring procedure.

Most providers say you can expect to lose 3 to 12 inches in a six-treatment, two-week session. The Zerona laser body sculpting procedure is performed on an outpatient basis, and continuous treatments of up to six sessions in a two-week period may be necessary to see the best results. The painless 40 minute sessions are usually spent by patients reading, relaxing, or sometimes taking a nap. Zerona is quick and convenient enough that many patients schedule treatments during their normal lunch hour.