Around a year, in our clinic's experience, with a repeat session considered after 12 to 18 months. The result is not instant: the focused ultrasound makes tiny points of heat below the skin, and the collagen that the tissue builds in response is laid down over three to six months, which is when the lift shows. Merz, the manufacturer, words it as results that can last up to a year or more in some patients, and it names no repeat interval, so the maintenance plan is the clinic's own and is set with you at your review.
The timeline
- The day of treatment: the skin is a little red for a few hours and may be swollen for one to three days. Some people notice a tighter look within days, partly from swelling; do not judge the result on it.
- Three months: the first lift, as the new collagen is laid down; the brow study measured its 86% at 90 days.
- Three to six months: the result building to its full extent, which is when Merz says to expect visible results; we compare your photographs at three months.
- Around a year: the result eases gradually. Merz says up to a year or more in some patients; we say around a year, from what we see.
- 12 to 18 months: a repeat session where you and the clinician agree the lift has eased.
What the studies followed
The published studies measured at 90 and 180 days: 86% of brows lifted at 90 days in a 2010 published trial, 58% of patients improved on the lower face and under the chin to reviewers who did not know which photograph was taken first in a 2014 study of 93 patients, and the chest lines improved in 62% at 180 days in a 2013 study of 24 women. A 2016 pilot of 20 patients followed them to one year, when 95% were rated improved on both the patient and the physician scales; our own experience is around a year.
What makes it last longer or shorter
In our experience skin treated early, with mild laxity, holds longest, and sun, smoking and weight change shorten the result; daily sunscreen helps. In a 2014 study, more than half of patients with a body mass index above 30 showed no change, against 12% of those at 30 or under, so the clinician checks it at the consultation. Ultherapy does not stop the face ageing; it sets the clock back by a modest, natural step, and a repeat session, in our experience, maintains it.
One session or more
One session is the manufacturer's protocol and ours. The does it hurt page covers the session itself, and the full Ultherapy guide the whole treatment.
Book a free consultation
Call Ultherapy London on 0207 043 8109 or use the form below. The clinician tells you what result to expect on your own skin and when, and sets out the price per area in writing.
