Skin ligaments and cellulite

“TL;DR: Skin ligaments, collagen bands, fibrous septa, fibrous bands, retinaculae cutis: name them whichever way you will, those collagen fibre bundles play an important role in cellulite but not THE most important one. That role is reserved for hypodermal fat which is the primary cause of cellulite.

Learn all the facts and dispel the myths below.”

Skin retinaculae and cellulite

• The role of skin ligaments (aka “collagen bands”, “fibrous bands”, skin retinaculae or “fibrous septa”) in cellulite

• How fat and skin ligaments affect cellulite

• Subcision, palper-rouler and AWT to break / relax the skin ligaments?

• Radiofrequency and ultrasound to reduce hypodermal fat, tighten skin, boost circulation and relax skin ligaments

• Have a skin tightening/cellulite treatment in London with the experts

• Advanced, infrared / blue / red light therapy treatments in London at LipoTherapeia

• The Cellulite School™: Get advanced training in cellulite reduction and skin tightening

The role of skin ligaments (aka “collagen bands”, “fibrous bands”, skin retinaculae or “fibrous septa”) in cellulite

Cellulite appears due to the action of enlarged fat globules pushing skin upwards and shortened collagen fibre bundles pulling skin downwards.

Skin ligaments vs fat: what is the most important aspect of cellulite?

These collagen fibre bundles are not bothersome, unnecessary for the body tissues that need to be cut out so that fat can perpetually expand upwards without hindrance.

These fibres are known to anatomists as retinaculae cutis*, i.e. skin ligaments, and they are there, as all ligaments, to keep two parts of connective tissue attached to each other.

In the case of skin ligaments, they keep skin attached to the fascia underneath, so without them skin would just slide down and would not stay in place. In a nutshell, skin ligaments keep skin our in place.

(* Retinaculae cutis are known to the public as “collagen bands” and are also known to both public and “experts” alike as septa or, more correctly, septae. However, researchers have found no fibrous septae in cellulite, just retinaculae, so the term septae is erroneous.)

How fat and skin ligaments affect cellulite

When fat globules around those skin ligaments enlarge, they also stretch the skin ligaments. And as fat globules enlarge they also inhibit circulation and tissue oxygenation and flood the area with inflammatory cytokines (cellulite fat tissue is well-known to cause chronic, low grade inflammation, exactly the same as visceral fat tissue).

With continuous stretching, hypoxia and inflammation, skin retinaculae also become inflamed and fibrotic and as a result they shorten.

So it is not those “pesky” skin ligaments that primarily cause cellulite, it is fat. Therefore, the first course of action should not be to cut out the retinaculae cutis, the first course of action should be to reduce hypodermal fat levels (hypodermis is the deeper skin layer, where cellulite is found).

Subcision, palper-rouler and AWT to break / relax the skin ligaments?

Procedures like subcision and cellfina cut out the skin retinaculae and let fat expand freely upwards but do nothing for the main cause of cellulite, hypodermal fat. The aftermath is:

• 25 incision scars above the 25 biggest cellulite dents - and these scars do not always fade away, with some becoming hyper-pigmented or hypertrophic in certain cases

• Skin laxity, as the skin supporting retinaculae are cut-off and skin can glide more freely on the underlying fascia

• Hundreds of smaller cellulite dents which are not treated (they cannot physically be treated in one, 5 or even 10 surgery sessions)

Another option is to try to stretch the retinaculae with machines which perform mechanical skin rolling massage combined with vacuum suction but all these techniques manage to is to loosen up the skin and cause thread veins.

Another option is to try to real and break down the retinaculae with acoustic wave therapy (shockwaves) but these do not do anything significant, either to skin ligaments or to cellulite in general.

Radiofrequency and ultrasound to reduce hypodermal fat, tighten skin, boost circulation and relax skin ligaments

And yet there is another way, which makes sense and addresses the main cause of cellulite: to reduce hypodermal fat. The best techniques to achieve this SAFELY are deep-acting, high-power radiofrequency and deep-acting, high-power ultrasound cavitation, ideally combined with high-power LED phototherapy.

Deep-acting, high-power radiofrequency helps reduce hypodermal fat levels and tighten the skin, while deep-acting, high-power ultrasound cavitation also reduces hypodermal fat levels and helps relax the retinaculae.

They both boost circulation and lymphatic drainage, while high-power LED phototherapy helps maximise the effects of RF and ultrasound when applied right after those techniques.

Such an approach makes much more sense, as it prioritises fat reduction but also secondarily works to relax the skin ligaments, boost circulation / lymph drainage and - very importantly - tighten the skin, which is usually loose on women with cellulite.

Have a skin tightening/cellulite treatment in London with the experts

At LipoTherapeia we have specialised 100% in skin tightening and cellulite reduction for more than two decades and 20,000+ sessions.

This is all we study and practise every day and have researched and tried hands-on all the important skin tightening equipment and their manufacturers.

As strong, deep acting radiofrequency and deep-acting, high-power ultrasound cavitation are the technologies of choice for skin tightening and cellulite reduction, we have invested in the best RF/ultrasound technologies in the world.

Furthermore, over the last two decades we have developed advanced RF and cavitation treatment protocols in order to make the most of our technologies, for maximum results, naturally and safely.

And for even better, faster results, we now combine our RF/ultrasound treatments with high-power red/infrared light LED treatment.

Our radiofrequency/ultrasound/LED treatments are comfortable, pain-free, downtime-free, injection-free, microneedling-free, 99.5%+ safe and always non-invasive.

And our focus is on honest, realistic, science-based treatment, combined with caring, professional service, with a smile.

We will be pleased to see you, assess your cellulite, skin laxity or fibrosis, listen to your story, discuss your case and offer you the best possible treatment.

Learn more or check prices and book an expert cellulite / skin tightening treatment at our London clinic (49 Marylebone High Street, W1).

Advanced, infrared / blue / red light therapy treatments in London at LipoTherapeia

At LipoTherapeia we are passionate about phototherapy (also known as photobiomodulation/PBM, red light therapy, infrared light therapy, blue light therapy, LED light therapy etc) and we use the most powerful equipment available today (up to 200mW/cm2), for best results and for effective treatment of large body areas.

We use specialised therapy protocols for skin rejuvenation / anti-ageing, pigmentation / post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH), moderate/severe acne, skin redness, sensitive/inflamed/irritated skin, wound healing, sports injuries / musculoskeletal pain and overall wellness / well-being.

Our LED phototherapy sessions are comfortable, deeply relaxing and super-safe and are great to enhance our radiofrequency/ultrasound treatments for skin tightening / cellulite reduction.

On our booking page you can book stand-alone phototherapy sessions or combine them with our other treatments, as an add-on.

Learn more or check prices and book an expert LED phototherapy treatment at our London clinic (49 Marylebone High Street, W1).

The Cellulite School™: Get advanced training in cellulite reduction and skin tightening

Do you want to deeply understand radiofrequency, ultrasound cavitation, cellulite and skin tightening?

Attend a half-day, 1-day or 2-day or 3-day one-to-one masterclass and confidently offer your clients the safest, strongest and most effective treatment possible.

Service available via Zoom or at our central London practice.

Learn more or check prices and book training at our London clinic (49 Marylebone High Street, W1)