If you’re versed in the aesthetic world, you no doubt know about microneedling. This popular treatment puts the skin’s healing mechanisms to use, improving the skin quality through hundreds of tiny punctures. And you probably have heard of radiofrequency energy being used to tighten the skin and stimulate collagen production.
If you combined microneedling with deeply delivered radiofrequency energy, You’d have Morpheus8. Dr. Motakis offers this revolutionary skin improvement treatment for our patients from Toronto and the surrounding areas.
What Is Morpheus8?
Morpheus8 combines two popular noninvasive aesthetic treatments into one, all for the benefit of your skin. Morpheus8 basically combines microneedling with radiofrequency energy delivery. It does so by delivering the RF energy when the microneedling pins are at their full depth.
This means the RF energy doesn’t have to work to penetrate the outer epidermis; the pins allow the energy to be delivered directly into the dermis, where the increased collagen production is triggered.
In this way, Morpheus8 provides the superficial skin improvements of microneedling with the deep tissue collagen boost of radiofrequency energy.
How Is Morpheus8 Different From Traditional Microneedling?
In Mode Aesthetics is the company that created Morpheus8. In Mode is a leading company in various radiofrequency treatments for skin tightening and rejuvenation. In Morpheus8, they took that radiofrequency expertise and added it to microneedling.
In Morpheus8, the microneedles in the handpiece penetrate the epidermis down into the dermis (up to approximately 4mm). When the microneedles are at their full depth, the tips release a pulse of RF energy. But unlike RF treatments that are delivered from atop the skin (where they need to first penetrate the outer epidermis), Morpheus8 delivers the RF energy directly into the dermis. This is where the RF energy converts to heat and creates a wound-healing response in the skin with the production of new collagen and elastin. This new collagen and elastin firm, thicken, and improve the skin.
It’s the RF energy that makes Morpheus8 superior to traditional microneedling. It’s delivering that RF energy through penetrating microneedling that makes Morpheus8 superior to stand-alone RF treatments.
What Areas Can Be Treated With Morpheus8?
When researching Morpheus8, Dr. Motakis liked the adjustability of Morpheus8. The microneedle penetration can be adjusted all the way up to 4mm of depth. This allows us to use Morpheus8 on areas with thin skin, such as the forehead, by simply shortening the needle penetration. The extra depth is great for areas of thicker skin, such as the cheeks. Morpheus8 can be used just about anywhere on the face, neck, and body. We use Morpheus8 on areas you’d never think of treating with laser energy, such as the delicate tissues around the mouth and the upper and lower eyelids.
Here are specific areas we treat at Dr. Motakis:
- Entire face
- Neck
- Décolletage
- Arms
- Abdomen
- Areas with stretchmarks
- Post-surgical scars
- Banana roll under the buttocks
- Knees
What Kinds Of Skin Issues Can Morpheus8 Improve?
These treatments improve various skin problems:
- Hyperpigmentation
- Fine lines and wrinkles
- Dull tissue
- Large pores
- Uneven skin tone
- Acne scars
- Active acne
- Skin laxity
- Stretchmarks
What’s Involved In A Morpheus8 Treatment?
You arrive about one hour before we’ll start your treatment at our beautiful offices on 199 Avenue Road and we apply topical numbing cream. Once this has fully taken effect we get started. The procedure is really simple. Our two medical estheticians, Violetta Centeno and Parvaneh Sedighi, handle these treatments. You lie on our treatment table, and the Morpheus8 handpiece is placed onto your skin.
The microneedles extend and penetrate your skin at a set depth of up to 4mm. When they reach their depth the gold-plated tips of the microneedles deliver a pulse of radiofrequency energy deep into the dermis layer or fat layer (depending on the penetration depth). This energy heats the dermis. When the body senses heat in the dermis layer, it assumes there has been a wound, so it initiates a wound-healing response. This involves remodeling all existing collagen in the area and then initiating the production of new collagen. Since collagen provides the skin’s structural support latticework, this instantly tightens the skin and then the increased collagen continues to build your results.
We move the handpiece in a coordinated path, placing it, activating the needles, and then moving it to the next adjacent spot. This is continued until we have completely covered your treatment areas.
Will I Have Recovery And Downtime After A Morpheus8 Treatment?
After your Morpheus8 session, your skin will be red, and you’ll likely have some mild swelling. As a response to the microneedling, your skin in the treated areas will feel tight and may be a little shiny for 3-5 days. At the sites of the hundreds of microscopic punctures, you may have small, flaky scabs and some light peeling skin. If you keep your skin moisturized, all of this can be effectively dealt with. You will need to protect your skin with 30+ SPF sunscreen or just avoid the sun for a couple weeks, as it will be susceptible to UV radiation. Patients can usually return to work the next day, but you may want to schedule your session in the afternoon to give your skin the evening to calm down a bit.
How Many Morpheus8 Treatments Are Recommended?
We’ve found that anywhere from one to four Morpheus8 treatments can achieve the skin tightening our patients from Toronto and the surrounding areas seek. Each of these treatments should be spaced from three to five weeks apart. This timeframe allows your skin to fully heal and for the ramp-up in collagen production to take hold. After your series, occasional maintenance treatments will work to keep your collagen production at an elevated level.
Are There Any Risks Involved With Morpheus8?
An advantage of using RF energy to heat tissues and generate new collagen and elastin production, as opposed to lasers (which use higher-frequency light waves), is that lower frequency RF energy can safely penetrate to a deep level, without damaging the surface skin (that’s not even an issue with Morpheus8’s microneedling aspect). Lasers generally work to improve the surface skin, as that is where the energy is absorbed. This is also why RF energy is safe for patients with darker skin tones, while laser treatments can cause hyperpigmentation.
Bottom line? Radiofrequency energy has been studied extensively for its impact on humans and has been found to be safe. The main risk associated with the use of this form of energy is the potential for burns, but Morpheus8 delivers its RF energy beneath the surface skin in a completely controlled method. If the skin temperature rises above where it should be the system shuts down.
Morpheus8 has been cleared by Health Canada and the U.S. FDA for skin tightening.
Read what our patients are saying!
"My experience with Dr. Motakis and his staff was excellent. They all made me feel very comfortable. Dr. Motakis is an excellent surgeon and I would recommend him to anyone. I am extremely happy with my results!!!"
Schedule a Client Consultation In Toronto, ON
To schedule a consultation or to learn more about our Morpheus8 procedure, contact us today at (416) 925-5775. Our practice serves Toronto, ON and the surrounding areas.
