Skin Tightening and Cellulite
Reduction Obtainable with TriPollar RF Technology
By Birgit Hansen, Contributing Editor
“The use of TriPollar technology is based
Alex Levenberg, M.D.
Doctors House
Department of Plastic Surgery
on the improved interactive ratio between
Tel Aviv, Israel
selective fat capacitive heating in relation
to inductive heating.”
Sagging skin and cellulite are skin disorders that affect the
lives of more than 80% of the world’s women. Popular meth-
ods of treatment include liposuction, mechanical massage,
injection lipolysis, exercise and diet regimens as well as ultra-
sound, radiofrequency (RF) and infrared light-based thermal
applications. Although most of these forms of treatment reduce
the visible symptoms of sagging skin and cellulite, the result is
usually only temporary.
It is well known that weakened connective tissue, enlarged
fat cells and diminished microcirculation play a key role in the
pathogenesis of sagging skin and cellulite. Therefore, long-
term correction of these skin disorders should be possible by
modifying, reducing and improving these symptoms.
Pollogen™ Ltd.’s new Regen™ system (Tel Aviv, Israel) utilizes
TriPollar™ RF for skin tightening and cellulite treatment. The
combined effect of monopolar and bi-polar RF energy gener-
ates simultaneous deep and superficial dermal heating which
in turn induces controlled inflammation and reduces fat cell size
with simultaneous enhancement of microcirculation and lym-
phatic drainage. The cosmetic effects are visible and include an
immediate reduction of cellulite as well as skin tightening.
Common RF systems for cellulite and skin tightening treat-
ment use either a monopolar or a bi-polar configured source
of RF. For the purpose of heating adipose tissue, a monopolar
configuration is less beneficial since the electric current finds
its way through the body via the circuit of least resistance (i.e.
blood and lymphatic vessels). Using a bi-polar configuration,
the depth of penetration into the dermal layers of the skin is
constant and cannot be modified in various body areas or
under different skin conditions. In order to prevent epidermal
overheating and burns, most of these systems need to be used
2 European Aesthetic Buyers Guide Autumn 2007 www.euroabg.com
in conjunction with cooling systems. The cooling process, how-
ever, reduces the treatment efficacy.
TriPollar RF technology applies three or more electrodes to
induce a high frequency electric current under the skin, achiev-
ing a better focused electric energy discharge combined with
the ability to vary the depth of penetration without any active
cooling. Selective heating of the fat cells induces an increased
rate of lipolysis, the physiological mechanism by which adi-
pose tissue releases its stored fat and makes it available as an
energy source for metabolic processes. Dermal tightening is
simultaneously achieved by the heating of collagen fibers in the
extra cellular matrix. The tightening effect is immediately visible
following treatment as a result of the collagen fiber contraction
in two dimensions. Thermal damage to the extra cellular matrix
initiates a cascade of inflammatory processes, including fibrob-
last proliferation, as well as long-term collagen remodeling.
“The use of TriPollar technology is based on the improved
interactive ratio between selective fat capacitive heating in rela-
tion to inductive heating, due to the larger electrical resistance
of fat cells (roughly 2000 ohm/cm for fat, 600 ohm/cm for
skin and 400 ohm/cm for viscera),” explained Alex Levenberg,
M.D., of Doctors House, department of plastic surgery in Tel
Aviv, Israel. “This means that for capacitive heating of the skin,
a TriPollar applicator is placed on the treatment area, the latter
consisting of a layer of skin, a layer of fat and a layer of mus-
cle. The Regen system drives RF power up to 16 J/cm3 at a fre-
quency of 1 MHz through the layers. The electric current pass-
es between the three electrodes and is obliged to pass through
the intermediate fat layer in the process. Since fat has a much
higher electrical resistance, it heats up to a much greater
extent, which in turn causes fat cells to dissolve while the sur-
rounding tissue remains intact,” Dr. Levenberg added.