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HealthWatch: Fight Aging With The Ultrasound Facelift

NEW YORK (CBS 2) -- For those who are looking to get a facelift but don't want to undergo surgery, a new procedure may make that possible.

The breakthrough technique tightens up your face using sound waves.

"My brow is lower, and when I put eye makeup on it, it doesn't go on as smooth, it's creased," Mindy Oro said.

Oro, 50, feels her face has started to show unwelcome signs of aging.

"I also have a lot of loose skin in my neck area and my jowls," Oro said. "I would like all that to be tightened."

Oro said surgery seems too drastic, so she's trying a new, minimally invasive procedure just approved by the Food and Drug Administration called Ulthera.

New York plastic surgeon Dr. Haideh Hirmand said the technology is nothing short of revolutionary.

"It's the first time we can get under the skin, see under the skin, treat under the skin, without cutting the skin," Dr. Hirmand said.

Ulthera works by using sound waves and heat to tone, firm and lift tissue under the skin.

"You do not need anesthesia, it does not need to be done in an operating room," Dr. Hirmand said. "It's an office procedure – it's a lunchtime-type procedure."

The treatment works by stimulating the skin to make more collagen, which is what gives skin its firmness and elasticity.

Immediately after the treatment, there is virtually no visible change to the skin – it takes three months to achieve the full benefits. After those three months, though, the difference can be dramatic.

Dr. Hirmand cautions, however, that not everyone can hope for a big change.

"It's not a substitute for surgery, so if the looseness is extreme, they may get some benefit, but it's going to be subtle," Dr. Hirmand said.

Some patients take a mild pain reliever before the procedure, but Oro didn't need one.

"It felt like a warm, tingling sensation, a little pins-and-needles," Oro said. "Very, very little discomfort – I was very relaxed."

Oro can't wait to see her final results.

"I'm very excited. It was definitely worth it," she said.

The procedure starts at $1,500 and up, depending on how much of the face is treated.

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