Ellsworth Doctor Performing State’s First Laser Liposuction Procedures

BY JENNIFER OSBORN
Courtesy The Ellsworth American
October 22 2009

ELLSWORTH — Dr. Stephen Nightingale of Coastal Skin Care Center has begun performing the first liposuction procedures to be done with a laser in the state of Maine.

Nightingale is using a laser liposuction instrument called SmartLipo with longtime Bangor orthopedist Richard Mazzei in Bangor. The two have formed a new practice called Contour, specifically for the laser liposuctions.

Laser liposuction has many benefits over traditional liposuction, Nightingale said.

The physician explained that the laser disrupts the fat cells, breaking them down and liquefying them so that when the fatty tissue is sucked out of the body, it’s coming out as a liquid.

The patients experience much less bruising and their recovery time is significantly reduced, said Nightingale.

“It’s a gentle liposuction,” he said. The other benefit is the laser tightens the skin.

Nightingale said many traditional liposuction clients have loose skin afterward. They have smaller girth but because the fat is reduced, the skin is looser.

“We’re not only heating the fat cell and disrupting the fat cell, we’re also heating the dermis or lower layer of skin,” the physician said. “By heating the skin we get a nice tissue contraction and tightening.”

Laser liposuction is less costly than traditional liposuction because the procedure can be performed in an office instead of a hospital. Also, patients don’t need to go under general anesthesia, so there are no anesthesiology fees.

The new laser liposuction procedure is available at Contours at 77 Broadway in Bangor.