Laser Lipo Treatment uses 1,060 nm diode laser that delivers laser heat to the fat and water of the subcutaneous tissue, safely raising the temperature of adipocytes up to 42–47ºC, thereby disrupting the fat cell membrane resulting in apoptosis. The disrupted fat cells are then normally excreted through the body's lymphatic system.
When the laser penetrates the fat cells, it creates tiny holes in the membranes of the cells, causing them to release stored fatty acids as well as stored glycerol and water.
This type of laser liquefies fat within fat cells and causes the cells to release their contents, which are then naturally removed from the body. As a result of the collapsed fat cells, the volume of the waistline, hips and thighs is reduced. After the fat is removed, the cell basically dies.
A clinical trial of Zerona, sponsored by Erchonia, involved 67 subjects who received either the laser treatment or a sham treatment for two weeks. The study was completed in 2008 and published in the December 2009 issue of the journal Lasers in Surgery and Medicine.
(The sham treatment included a red light-emitting diode, or LED, which looked similar to the laser treatment.)
The laser reduces the circumference of the patients' waists and hips by about an inch (2.5 centimeters), according to studies. Patients also lost a bit less than an inch (about 2 cm) from each thigh.