Most noninvasive treatments take 1 hour or less, and makeup can often go on right after. Redness and swelling are expected. After Thermage, they usually lasted less than 24 hours.[1][2]
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After treatment and risks
Microfocused ultrasound lifted the brow 0.47 to 1.7 mm and reduced the submental area by 26 to 45 mm2 in pooled studies, with improvement in 92% at day 90 lasting up to 1 year. After radiofrequency-assisted liposuction o
After treatment
Most noninvasive treatments take 1 hour or less, and makeup can often go on right after. Redness and swelling are expected. After Thermage, they usually lasted less than 24 hours.[1][2]
Six of over 600 Thermage patients had swelling for up to 1 week. Minimally invasive radiofrequency needs sedation, a driver home, wound care and a compression garment for 4 or 5 days.[1][2]
After minimally invasive radiofrequency, results usually appear in about 1 month. Swelling lasted over 6 weeks in 4.8% of FaceTite lower face and neck patients.[1][2]
After one ultrasound treatment, most people see modest lifting in 2 to 6 months. After noninvasive radiofrequency, the best results appear in about 6 months.[1]
Microfocused ultrasound improvement continued up to 1 year in pooled studies. Gradual tightening for close to 1 year has been reported after minimally invasive radiofrequency.[1][2]
Some people benefit from more than one treatment, and a series may be needed. AAD says radiofrequency results can last 2 to 3 years with the right skin care.[1][2]
Risks
Pooled pain after microfocused ultrasound averaged 4.85 out of 10. Parallel ultrasound scored 5.6 and 6.64 out of 10 in two studies.[1][2][3]
Second-degree burns followed 0.36% of Thermage applications in the multicenter study, with small scars in 3 patients at 6 months. Full-thickness burns were frequently reported to the FDA for Renuvion.[1][2]
Lipoatrophy was among the most frequent Ulthera problems in 106 FDA device reports. One Thermage patient had a slight cheek depression that resolved in 3.5 months.[1][2]
Marginal mandibular neuropraxia followed 1.2% of FaceTite lower face and neck treatments and resolved. Temporary sensory and motor nerve injury were among the common events in the Renuvion APR neck study.[1][2]
Tissue hardness followed 9.1% of 55 RFAL neck and face patients and resolved with massage. A review found induration and nodules the most frequent complications of subsurface radiofrequency.[1][2]
Four case reports describe pneumothorax, pneumomediastinum, pneumoperitoneum and pneumomastia after Renuvion. FDA adverse event reports included 15 life-threatening events and 3 deaths.[1]
Transient redness with or without swelling is the most common effect of microfocused ultrasound. Other effects were rare, at 2%, including numbness, bruising and striations.[1][2]
One FDA device report described a compromised facelift after Ulthera. A 2025 review found no supporting evidence in the published literature on the effect on a later facelift.[1]
How long results last
Microfocused ultrasound lifted the brow 0.47 to 1.7 mm and reduced the submental area by 26 to 45 mm2 in pooled studies, with improvement in 92% at day 90 lasting up to 1 year. After radiofrequency-assisted liposuction of the abdomen, skin area stayed 25.8% smaller at 1 year. AAD says radiofrequency results can last 2 to 3 years with the right skin care.[1][2][3]