Ultherapy

How it works

Ultherapy, made by Merz Aesthetics, sends focused ultrasound to fixed depths below the skin while an ultrasound image shows the tissue layers. The practitioner chooses a transducer for each depth, so a single visit can combine a shallow and a deeper setting. Energy is delivered as a series of lines, and each line is a row of small thermal points. The aim is to prompt gradual collagen remodeling over the following months. Response varies by person and by how much laxity is present.

Good to know

• Transducers are matched to depth and area, so a quote that lists only a total can hide how the lines are split between them.
• The imaging step lengthens the appointment, and that preparation time may be reflected in a clinic's session fee rather than in the line count.
• Transducer cartridges are rated for a limited number of lines, which is why some clinics itemize the cartridge and others fold it into the total.
• Neck and brow areas are often listed separately from the lower face, so check which zones a figure actually covers.

How Ultherapy affects a treatment quote

Of all the lifting devices, Ultherapy is the one where the line is the natural unit. A fair quote states how many lines are planned per zone and which transducer depth each group of lines uses. Without those two facts, a total figure is hard to place next to another clinic's.

Because the cartridge only holds so many lines, a plan that spills over can mean a second cartridge. Ask whether that is already counted. Also ask whether a touch-up visit is part of the plan or billed on its own, and whether VAT sits inside the figure. Imaging time, numbing and follow-up care are separate questions worth writing down before the exam.