Dr. Brian Hurley is the owner of Illumination MedSpa in Irmo, South Carolina. The Columbia metropolitan area medical spa offers alternatives to liposuction such as Lipo-Ex, Lipotherme, and Vaser Lipo, as well as a variety of procedures such as laser hair removal, laser vein removal, laser skin rejuvenation, dermal fillers, facials, and Botox. Here, he discusses South Carolina’s relatively conservative attitude toward medical spas.
Medical spa procedures in South Carolina generally tend to lag behind those of other regions, where more plastic surgery and non-invasive cosmetic procedures are done. For example, body sculpting with laser-assisted lipolysis (Lipotherme), ultrasound-assisted lipolysis (Vaser Lipo), and non-invasive radio frequency-assisted lipolysis (Lipo-Ex), all of which we offer here at Illumination MedSpa, are just recently coming into vogue. Many people are not even aware that these procedures exist. In fact, I am the only physician in the Columbia metropolitan area (the capital and largest city in South Carolina) who performs Lipotherme, Vaser Lipo, and Lipo-Ex.
South Carolina tends to be a more conservative state than even its neighbor to the immediate north, North Carolina. Charlotte, North Carolina, is a much larger metropolitan area than Columbia (with about 2 million residents compared with Columbia’s 750,000), and has been much more progressive in embracing both invasive and non-invasive cosmetic medical spa procedures.
Another example of where South Carolina is behind is with permanent make-up. This procedure has only recently been offered in South Carolina and is just starting to gain popularity. But when it comes to competition, I welcome it: It has always been my philosophy that the more practices who offer a particular cosmetic procedure, the more the public gets educated on it. And then it is up to me to be the best.
The information in the article is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your healthcare provider. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with an appropriate healthcare provider.
