Elizabeth Tanzi, MD and HALO™: A Sciton Success Story

Years ago, Elizabeth Tanzi, MD a board-certified dermatologist and founder of Capital Laser & Skin Care, made a big decision. “We used to offer very aggressive treatments using an ablative CO2 laser,” she says. “But eventually, I realized patients don’t want lengthy downtimes, and the risk of side effects was just too great. I told everyone I would never go fully ablative again.”

That decision led her to pursue less ablative options, and that led her to the HALO™ treatment from Sciton. As Dr. Tanzi says, “I appreciate the fact that Sciton was started by engineers, people who put the quality and reliability of their science over hype. Anyone who’s used their lasers would say the same.”

The HALO treatment is truly in a class by itself, delivering ablative-level results without ablative-level downtime. With the HALO treatment, a 2940 nm wavelength targets the epidermis and ablates tiny columns addressing textural issues and pores. At the same time, a 1470 nm wavelength targets the dermis and stimulate collagenesis. Each wavelength can be tuned independently for precise coverage and depth. As a result, HALO has the power to reduce the appearance of sun damage, discoloration, fine lines and other signs of aging — without the downtime or discomfort of traditional ablative treatments.

“When I treat patients with HALO,” Dr. Tanzi says, “their skin may be a little pink afterward, but they’re able to wear makeup and return to work in a few days.” In addition, she is able to treat skin types I – IV on the Fitzpatrick scale, as the risks of side effects such as hypopigmentation are low.

Over time, though, Dr. Tanzi began hearing something very interesting from her colleagues: The JOULE platform she uses to deliver HALO treatments also includes a very powerful erbium laser component, enabling her to offer a stronger treatment option. Dr. Tanzi was reluctant at first. She had experiences with erbium lasers fifteen years ago, when they were less sophisticated. In addition, she was still concerned her patients would balk at the longer downtime.

What she found was she could now offer HALO on as much as three-fourths of the patient’s face, and then target specific areas with the erbium laser. As Dr. Tanzi says, “The HALO treatment is fantastic for most of the face, and the JOULE also comes with the gold standard of erbium lasers. We can treat deeper wrinkles such as those radial lines (smoker’s lines) along the upper and lower lip.”

Because of the results Dr. Tanzi is able to deliver with the HALO treatment and the erbium laser — a combination she calls the HALO Plus — patients have been far more willing to undergo a few days of downtime. “I’m now able to tell my patients, ‘If you give me four or five days, we can really refresh your skin and give you the HALO glow,’” she says.

In addition, she notes that in the two years she’s owned her system, she’s never had any breakdowns or problems, which is a distinct advantage when unreliable systems mean you’re turning away patients and therefore revenue. But the results are what keep Dr. Tanzi returning to HALO. “The more I provide HALO and HALO Plus treatments, the more positive responses I get from patients, and the more I want to use it,” Dr. Tanzi says, “They’re thrilled and I’m thrilled — I keep falling in love with it again and again.”

To learn more about the advantages that JOULE and HALO can deliver for your practice, visit our HALO treatment page https://scitondev.wpengine.com/physicians/halo/ or contact your Sciton representative at info@sciton.com