Focused Ultrasound · Platforms · Pacific Plaza
Ultherapy Prime vs Ultraformer MPT vs Shurink is a comparison of three focused ultrasound platforms that share the same physics and differ in how energy is delivered and whether the layer is seen first. Atelier offers Ultherapy and unbranded HIFU; Ultherapy Prime, Ultraformer MPT and Shurink are not offered at Atelier and are described here for comparison, because the questions Dr Sin Yong asks of any face apply to all three.
All three converge ultrasound below the skin into a point of roughly 60–70 °C, smaller than a cubic millimetre, leaving the surface intact. The heated tissue contracts and then lays down new collagen, which is why change builds over weeks rather than showing on the day.
Ultherapy Prime, from Merz, is micro-focused ultrasound with visualisation. Before each line it shows the tissue to about 8 mm deep, then fires discrete points through transducers set to 4.5, 3.0 and 1.5 mm; frequency falls as depth increases.
Ultraformer MPT, from CLASSYS, offers 4.5, 3.0, 2.0 and 1.5 mm cartridges for the face, plus deeper ones for the body. MPT stands for micro-pulsed technology: the handpiece glides along the line while firing rapid small pulses, laying energy more densely and evenly than separate points. It has no imaging.
Shurink, also from CLASSYS, is a cartridge-based platform without imaging, its fixed depths including 4.5, 3.0 and 1.5 mm. Marketing for the current generation describes a pulsed mode plus pen-type handpieces for small areas.
Side By Side
The table compares design, not results. No head-to-head evidence between these three platforms is cited here, so no row ranks them.
| Ultherapy Prime | Ultraformer MPT | Shurink | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy or mechanism | Discrete focused points in lines, with real-time imaging | Micro-pulsed trains along each line; no imaging | Cartridge-based lines; pulsed mode marketed; no imaging |
| Depth and target | Transducers at 4.5, 3.0 and 1.5 mm | Face cartridges at 4.5, 3.0, 2.0 and 1.5 mm | Fixed-depth cartridges; 4.5, 3.0 and 1.5 mm among them |
| Typical sessions | Set by response, judged at a follow-up visit | Set by response, judged at a follow-up visit | Set by response, judged at a follow-up visit |
| Comfort and numbing | Brief deep ache along SMAS lines; numbing discussed | Energy spread along the line; often reported as easier | Varies with settings; not assessed here |
| Downtime | Redness, tenderness, possible swelling or bruising | Redness, tenderness, possible swelling or bruising | Redness, tenderness, possible swelling or bruising |
| When results show | Gradually, as collagen remodels over weeks to months | Gradually, as collagen remodels over weeks to months | Gradually, as collagen remodels over weeks to months |
| Who it suits | Thin or uncertain tissue depth, where seeing the layer helps | Denser coverage where depth can be judged by examination | Mild to moderate laxity, as for any focused ultrasound |
| At Atelier | Not offered at Atelier (Ultherapy is offered) | Not offered at Atelier | Not offered at Atelier |
Imaging And Comfort
Imaging lets the operator confirm whether the 4.5 mm focus will sit in the SMAS or in fat above the bone. That matters most where tissue depth changes within a centimetre, as at a thin temple or a lean lower face. It does not make heat in fat harmless, and it does not decide where to treat. Platforms without imaging are not working blind either: the depth is fixed by the cartridge, chosen after the tissue is felt.
Sensation differs with delivery. Discrete, higher-energy points at the SMAS tend to be felt as a deep ache along each line, while micro-pulsed delivery spreads the energy, and many people find it easier, though tolerance varies. On every platform the jaw and other bony areas are felt more than the cheek. Shot counts cannot be compared between devices, because a "shot" means different things on each.
Which Problem
Any of the three can suit mild to moderate laxity of the brow, lower face or neck, provided the face has kept its volume. Where tissue is thin or its depth uncertain, imaging tends to be preferred; where denser coverage is the plan and examination can judge depth, micro-pulsed delivery is often chosen.
Treatment is deferred or avoided in pregnancy, with active infection or inflamed acne in the area, with a pacemaker or metal implants near the field, and soon after filler or threads in the same plane. A very thin or hollow face needs caution, because heat in fat can read as further hollowing. Fullness from fat, and heavy skin that no energy can contract, are better served by other routes, including surgery by referral. What HIFU cannot do covers these limits.
How Atelier Decides
At Atelier the focused ultrasound options are Ultherapy and HIFU. Dr SY examines and palpates each zone, then decides which areas are treated, the depth in each, the number of lines, the energy, and where no energy goes: never over the thyroid, the orbital rim or the nerve along the jaw border. The written quote names the platform, areas and lines, as described on how we quote, and the background to imaging is on Ultherapy vs HIFU. Dr Sin Yong holds a Key Opinion Leader appointment with CLASSYS.
Wherever you go, ask which device is used, who feels the tissue and sets the depths, which areas are left untreated, and when the result will be judged.
Dr Sin Yong holds a Key Opinion Leader appointment with CLASSYS.
Atelier Aesthetics · Owned by AYA
9 Scotts Road, Pacific Plaza #12-01A, Singapore 228210 · +65 8023 7170
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