Body Contouring & Coolsculpting in Singapore: Why Choosing the Right Provider is More Important Than You Think

Body contouring has become increasingly popular as a fuss free spot-fat reduction treatment in Singapore. These slimming treatments are marketed as quick, comfortable, and requiring little to no downtime, making them especially appealing to consumers in Singapore who lead hectic lifestyles. With the growing accessibility of body contouring/body sculpting treatments at aesthetic clinics and even some beauty salons, it has also created a common misconception: that body contouring is a simple, low risk procedure where results are largely the same regardless of where you go. This could not be further from the truth.

In reality, the provider of your body contouring treatment matters just as much as the treatment you opt for. As a doctor who sees patients seeking help after unsatisfactory or complicated outcomes elsewhere, here are 3 reasons why choosing the right body contouring clinic is essential:

1. Body Contouring is Highly Skill-Dependent
Certain aesthetic treatments can be considered as standardised or low dependency, where the provider’s skill has minimal impact on the outcome. One such example is Redustim, a visceral fat treatment that utilises a pre-calibrated and automated device. Patients simply put on a bodysuit connected to the machine, and a standardised treatment protocol is applied uniformly across all patients. For such treatments, the quality and technology of the equipment used matters more than the manual dexterity of the technician.

Most body contouring treatments in the market however — be it fat freezing, radiofrequency (RF) fat melting or laser lipolysis, are highly skill-dependent even if they are marketed as simple and fuss-free to the consumer. Prior to treatment, the provider would need to access if the area of concern is suitable for treatment, mark the specific area(s) to treat, plan the type and placement of applicators, and tailor the treatment according to the patient’s body proportions, fat distribution, and other factors unique to the patient. Inadequate assessment and planning can backfire, as I will explain in the next point.

2. One Can End Up Looking Worse-Off in the Hands of An Inexperienced Provider
Much like a poorly performed filler or BTX treatment, body contouring, when done in the wrong areas or overdone, can leave one looking worse off than they started.

• Uneven Proportions
  I had a troubled patient who came to us after a fat freezing treatment she had received elsewhere resulted in a dented appearance on her tummy. Upon an assessment, it was clear that the applicator should have been placed over her navel area. However, the service provider had instead placed the applicator at the area above her navel and had overtreated that particular area such that too much fat was destroyed, leading to excessive/uneven fat loss and a resulting dented appearance as you can see in the photo below.

Fortunately, in this case, we were able to help with correcting and reversing the damage done by carefully reducing fats at surrounding areas to level it with the dented area as much as possible and restore a more even contour. However, not all botched body contouring cases are easily reversible. Anyone can learn to operate a machine, but such cases highlight why it is crucial to seek a provider who has a good understanding of body proportions and aesthetic balance, as targeting the correct fat deposit(s) is key to achieving aesthetically desired outcomes.

Note: As a MOH-regulated clinic in Singapore, we are not allowed to share before and after photos of treatments. Patients can request to view before and after photos during consultation in-clinic.

• Risk of Burns & Pigmentation
  In another case, a patient had come to consult for pigmented scar treatment on her back following radiofrequency fat removal treatment she had received at an aesthetic clinic in Singapore. She had felt a sudden, sharp pain less than a minute into treatment. Treatment was halted immediately but even seconds is enough to cause serious burns.
  As a result, she developed a blister which left a deep, 1cm wide pigmented scar after it healed. Because of how deep it extended into the skin layers, the pigmented scar required numerous laser sessions to surface and treat, compared to what is typically needed pigmented scars from acne inflammation or sun-induced pigmentation.

So what went wrong? After listening to the patient describe how her fat removal treatment was planned, the issue became clear. The provider had relied solely on visual assessment when marking the treatment area, without adequately palpating (touching and feeling) the area. If you refer at the above photo where the patient is standing naturally, an inexperienced provider may assume that the entire (boxed) area on the patient’s back consists of sufficient treatable fats when in fact, it consists of a bony area with minimal fat tissue, that SHOULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED due to the risks of burns.

Note that for certain areas like the back, the scapula (shoulder blade bone) may not be prominent/obvious if the patient has a naturally slouched posture or has fat surrounding the scapula, thus obscuring it.

As you can see in the above photo, when I asked the patient to stand upright, with arms behind the back, one is able to clearly see that the area treated (where the scar is) is directly over the scapula, and has minimal fat over it, confirming that it was not an appropriate area to treat. Performing fat melting treatments over such bony area with little fat/soft tissue should be avoided because handpieces cannot sit flush or evenly/securely against the fat which leads to the risk of burns.

In fact, the area that should be treated is below the scapula (marked in red arrow). Even if a burn had not occurred, targeting the wrong areas can lead to the actual fat bulge appearing more prominent due to the surrounding areas “sinking in”.

To make matters worse, the provider had placed the treatment handpieces all extremely close to each other on the grounding pad, resulting in high current density at a single point (refer to a similar documented case of RF burn here). This is a well-documented cause of RF burns and something I unfortunately see from time to time, along with the providers’ failure in ensuring that the grounding pad and handpiece are fully in contact with the skin when performing RF fat melting treatments.

3. Quality of Equipment Makes A Difference
Not all body contouring machines are created equal. There are various types of devices in the Singapore market for fat freezing and fat melting treatments. Due to the popularity of fat freezing treatment in Singapore especially, the market is flooded with options from inexpensive unregulated machines used in beauty salons to mid-tier systems such as CoolTech, costing tens of thousands of dollars, and high-end devices such as CoolSculpting, which cost well into six figures. If you are wondering why there is such a huge price discrepancy, check out the article by my colleague, explaining the various fat freezing treatments in Singapore.

Even when two providers are using the same brand, the choice of applicator used matters. Due to how costly CoolSculpting devices are, some clinics invest in a few applicators instead of the entire range and use the same applicator regardless of the body area treated. While this can technically be done, each applicator is designed to address different body areas optimally.

The curved C120 applicator, for example, is ideal for smaller, curved areas such as bra fat, back fat, and flanks while applicators such as the S150 is specifically designed for more fibrous areas with non-pinchable fat such as the lateral thigh and upper abdomen.

Using 1 or 2 applicators across all body areas, without regard to anatomical differences, fat levels, and curves can result in suboptimal fat reduction or uneven, less natural looking contours. At Veritas, we invest in a full suite of applicators to cater to different areas of concerns and select the ones that best fits the patients’ needs.

The above examples highlight the intricacies involved in body contouring. Proper aesthetic judgement, down to the selection of appropriate applicators and placement, is not only crucial for achieving optimal results, but also for avoiding complications such as uneven contours and burns.

There is no one-size-fits-all or textbook model answer when it comes to assessment as everyone’s fat distribution and body proportion varies. An experienced provider should understand how to adjust treatment parameters safely and effectively based on your anatomy and how your body responds/progresses through each session.

How then, to identify a suitably qualified clinic for your fat removal treatment in Singapore?

• Always ask to see before and after photos of the specific areas you are considering to treat. While before and after photos cannot be shared online due to regulations of clinics in Singapore, these should be shown to you during consultation. Check for consistency of lighting and angles in the photos shown to you.
• Prior to treatment, ask which specific areas will be marked for treatment. Be cautious of providers who do not communicate their treatment plan.
• Ask about follow-up and mid-treatment evaluation. Bodies respond differently and some see drastic fat reduction results quickly while others take longer. A responsible provider should have follow-ups in place to review progress and make adjustments to the treatment plan accordingly when needed, to avoid over-or-under treatment.

Have more questions about body contouring treatments? Feel free to reach out via WhatsApp or email us at ask@veritas.com.sg