What is the difference between UltraShape® and CoolSculpting® and which is better?

First, we want to go over what UltraShape® and CoolSculpting® are.
It is important to differentiate between technology and branded trademarks. These terms are just trademarks of different companies, and NOT the technology. When we refer to these trademarks in this article we are only doing so due to their popularity. It is like referring to a bandage as Bandaid®.

Brands?

CoolSculpting® just happens to be the most popular form of using targeted, supercooling to destroy fat cells (Cryolipolysis). Fat cells are more sensitive to cold than lean tissue cells. The target cooling will destroy fat without damaging other cells. CoolSculpting® is a trademark owned by ZELTIQ Aesthetics, which is a subsidiary of Allergan.

UltraShape® and Ultrashape III® has a similar result, but instead of using cold, it uses sound waves (ultrasound) to target stubborn fat pockets and cells.

For the sake of this article, we are going to focus on the technologies, and not the specific brands. We are going to compare Ultrasound fat destruction vs Super Cooling fast destruction (Cryolipolysis).

Technology

Fat Freezing Technology (Cryolipolysis)

Fat freezing or Cryolipolysis (the technology used with CoolSculpting®) is a way of using supercooling to target fat areas and destroy them with extremely cold temperatures. The system is obviously a lot more complex than just making your body cold, it is about the rate, degree, and duration of the cold to specifically target fatty tissue.

Fat cells in general, will react and be destroyed by extreme cold at a higher rate than lean tissues at the same temperature. By targeting a very specific temperature and duration, fat tissues can be targeted without causing damage to surrounding lean tissues.

By freezing the fat cells, the cells die. Our bodies restore and rebuild cells on a regular basis, and naturally has processes to cleanup dead cells, usually by passing them through our urine.

Ultrasound Fat Destruction

With Ultrasound, low frequency sonic waves are used to target fat cells and destroy the cellular membrane which instantly doesn’t just cause the cells to die, it actually destroys the cell entirely and the internal lipids of the cell are released and removed through the body’s lymphatic system.

By using specific frequencies, the sonic waves are able to only destroy targeted fat cells without causing damage to healthy lean tissue.

The sound waves are super targeted and specific not just to fat cells but also to specific areas that allow for extremely targeted results. This is great for smaller areas such as underarms or targeting cellulite.

Cost

Fat Freezing Technology (Cryolipolysis)

$600 - $1500 per cycle/treatment
Some people can get away with a single treatment but usually required more.

Ultrasound Fat Destruction

Up to $3700 for 3 treatments.
It is very rare that anyone even with larger areas would need more than 3 treatments.

The important difference

Cryolipolysis is usually talked about as being a cheaper option than Ultrasound. At face value, and from a marketing perspective, this is basically accurate. However; this is only in ideal scenarios. (This is important and we will discuss this a bit more further down).

Cryolipolysis (the technology used with CoolSculpting®) on average in Calgary will cost you around $600 - $1500 per cycle/treatment. While it is often mentioned that you only need a single treatment, there are a lot of variables here.

Smaller areas do only need a single treatment but most importantly there are caveats to this. It does depend on the size and the amount of fat that is to be destroyed.  

The benefit to Cryolipolysis (the technology used in Coolsculpting®) is that if you do have a very small area to target you can get away with a cheaper option than Ultrashape.

However; the reality is that it is quite rare that a single Cryolipolysis treatment will get you the results that you need. As a technician that has worked with both technologies over the years, I can tell you that most commonly Cryolipolysis is more expensive long term.

Yes, the single treatment can be considered cheaper but that is the marketing and not the reality. To get equivalent results, more often than not, Cryolipolysis is actually the more expensive technology.

Time

Fat Freezing Technology (Cryolipolysis)

60 minutes per cycle

Ultrasound Fat Destruction

30-60min per treatment 

The Important Difference

Basically, these technologies are quite similar in terms of time of the actual treatment.

Ultrasound technology will take a bit less time but overall the time is quite negligible. Neither requires extensive time.

However; the bigger difference comes down to time between treatments.
Coolsculpting, needs to have time between treatments for the body to heal and in order to not create a sensitivity to the cold (think frost bite).

Appropriate time between cycles / treatments with Cryolipolysis (the technology used in CoolSculpting®) is 20 weeks. While most clinics advertise less time, this is pushing the boundaries beyond the technological recommended timeframe.

Ultrasound does not require this much time between treatments. Most treatments can be done in as little as 72 hours after the previous treatment. The reason is that the Ultrasound does not have any effects on other tissues.

While Cryolipolysis doesn’t DAMAGE other cells it can cause sensitivity (especially to cold) and it does take longer for the body to remove the dead cells as opposed to destroying the cell membrane with Ultrasound.

PAIN

Pain is where you find one of the largest differences between the two technologies.

To discuss pain, we need to discuss what would be considered a "perfect treatment" and how treatments that are from a new technician can create a difference. A technician that is new and certified but may not be as experienced as another, could cause more pain than a more experienced technician. Think of a tattoo, different tattoo artist techniques will create varying amounts of pain for the person getting tattooed. However; the skill of the technician only matters for one of the technologies.

Fat Freezing Technology (Cryolipolysis)

Even with a perfect treatment, you are freezing your fat. Essentially, you are giving the fat cells in your body frostbite. While the technology allows for heavy targeting everyone’s body is different and a quick Google search will show you thousands of people who had permanent sensitivity to cold or pain up to the level of extreme from the treatment.

More often than not, extreme pain is caused by improper placement of the protective pad and applicator but even with proper placement, most people (according to RealSelf.com) do experience pain of some degree. It is often marketed as though the procedure is “uncomfortable” but not “painful”. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to read between the lines with “uncomfortable” being a euphemism for “yeah, it can be painful. It isn’t fun”.

Ultrasound Fat Destruction

Ultrasound does not have ANY pain. The ONLY discomfort comes from the noise from the machine. The machine can make a high-pitched noise, but it isn’t even near as bad as the sound from your dental cleaning. Sometimes the Ultrasound head as well can get warm, but it is never what would be considered HOT, nor uncomfortable, and definitely NOT painful.

Some light bruising can occur in rare instances, but the bruising also is usually mostly gone within 48 hours.

RESULTS

The results from both technologies are nearly identical.
More importantly, we would like to discuss the technical requirements of the technician because we feel that this is the most important difference in regard to the net results of how much fat loss occurs and for how long it will stay away.

While the technologies are quite identical in regard to the results, if the technician is extremely skilled with the Cryolipolysis procedure then you will get good results. However, Cryolipolysis is extremely technician dependent. Having a skilled technician with a lot of experience will produce better results than a new technician without a lot of experience.

Ultrasound requires NO skill from the technician. The technology is doing the work and there is no difference between technicians.

Improper Cryolipolysis can result in what we call “shark bites”, divots, shelving, etc. Basically, it can mean an unevenness in the skin and an unpleasant physical appearance.

For this reason, it is important to know your clinic with Cryolipolysis (the technology used in CoolSculpting®) and understand that results will carry when checking out reviews. Everyone's technician and body will make a difference on how good the results are with Cryolipolysis.

Summary

At the end of the day, it is up the consumer on which technology they prefer. Our technicians at RestoBod have used both technologies and half of our technicians are still certified in Cryolipolysis. As technicians that have used both technologies extensively over the years, when it came time to choosing one technology over the other we chose Ultrasound for the reasons mentioned above.

We feel it is safer, more cost-effective, and is more overall effective at destroying fat and providing better results than Cryolipolysis.

We chose Ultrashape III® Ultrasound technology specifically as we feel it is the best machine on the market and produces results that are better than other Ultrasound machines but more importantly we have been able to produce significantly better results than we ever could with Cryolipolysis (the technology used in CoolSculpting®).

Don’t get us wrong, we don’t feel that there is anything WRONG with Cryolipolysis nor Coolsculpting®. It is a popular and great technology, but in reality, we feel that Ultrashape and Ultrasound is just a better technology and can produce more consistent and better results more often than not.

Breakdown

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