Monopolar RF · Side Effects · Pacific Plaza
Thermage side effects are usually brief: pinkness, warmth, mild swelling and tenderness that settle within hours to a day or two. Burns, blisters, dents and altered sensation are uncommon. Here is why each happens, how Dr Sin Yong lowers the risk at Atelier, and which signs need a same-day call.
Most people leave with pink, warm, slightly swollen skin that fades the same day or the next, sometimes with a faint outline of the treatment tip. Uncommonly, a small burn or blister forms, or a dent appears where heat has reached the fat beneath thin skin.
Expected
Thermage FLX warms the dermis with monopolar radiofrequency while a cryogen spray cools the surface before, during and after each pulse. The warmth brings blood flow, so the skin looks pink and feels warm for a few hours, and mild swelling can follow, usually most visible along the jaw.
Tenderness is generally mild and fades without treatment. Brief tightness on the day is mostly swelling; the collagen change develops over two to six months. How the face tends to look day by day is set out on Thermage downtime.
Uncommon
A face that feels heavy weeks later is a different issue, often linked to earlier filler, and is assessed through pillow face correction.
| Effect | Usually settles | Contact the clinic if |
|---|---|---|
| Pinkness and warmth | Fades over hours | It deepens, spreads or comes with pain |
| Swelling | Mild, easing with a cool compress and sleeping with the head raised | It grows after starting to settle, or is one-sided and tender |
| Tip outline | A faint pattern that fades with the pinkness | It becomes raised welts, blisters or crusts |
| Tenderness | Mild, easing day by day | Pain increases rather than fades |
| Burn or blister | Not expected | Any blister, crust or open area: the same day |
| Contour change | Not expected | A dent forms or a hollow appears |
If It Lingers
Redness and swelling that improve each day can simply be watched. Send the clinic a photograph on WhatsApp if a mark has not faded after a few days, a blister appears or a dent seems to be forming. A burn is managed like a superficial burn, with wound care and strict sun avoidance, and is followed at the clinic until it has healed.
Anything getting worse, any open area, or a fever needs a same-day assessment wherever you are. Out of hours, for anything urgent, go to the nearest hospital emergency department. Day-to-day care is on Thermage aftercare, and complication care explains how problems are handled.
At Atelier
Dr SY sets the energy area by area and adjusts it to what you report feeling during each pass. The tip must sit flat with good coupling so the cooling works, overlapping passes are avoided on thin tissue, and lean areas get lighter settings. Screening comes first, as described on Thermage suitability, and the treatment itself is on the Thermage page.
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Atelier Aesthetics · Owned by AYA
9 Scotts Road, Pacific Plaza #12-01A, Singapore 228210 · +65 8023 7170
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