Don’t Get Serf Treatment Without Careful Consideration: Who Should and Shouldn’t Be Recommended Serf

I am Dr. Won-jin Cho, director of Chai Clinic, the first clinic in Mapo-gu to introduce Serf. I have been providing dermatological care at the same location in Hongdae for 10 years while serving as a Serf ambassador.

As a Serf ambassador, I share information about the effects of Serf through a variety of content.

The price difference between Serf and Thermage is almost nonexistent.

Are the effects similar as well?

I had it done, but I saw absolutely no results.

Many people who are looking for a lifting treatment with little pain ask about Serf.

I and my staff have tested it ourselves, and it is indeed an effective treatment.

However, it is not suitable for everyone.

I occasionally meet people who come to us after failing to see satisfactory results at another clinic, saying, “I just wasted a lot of money.”

So today, I’ll explain who can expect good results from Serf and, conversely, who may still feel disappointed even after receiving it.

You need to understand this accurately before starting so that you do not waste your money.

Table of Contents

• What are the effects of Serf? What kind of treatment is it?

• Recommended cases likely to see good results from Serf

• Cases in which Serf is not recommended

1. What is Serf? What kind of treatment is it?

Serf is a radiofrequency lifting device that delivers thermal energy into the skin.

When this heat reaches the dermal layer, loosened collagen immediately contracts, tightening the skin.

Over the following months, new collagen is produced, restoring the skin’s firmness.

This principle is not very different from existing radiofrequency lifting treatments such as Thermage.

However, Serf has one distinctive difference.

While Thermage heats the dermis using a single frequency, Serf combines this with another frequency that reaches deeper layers.

As a result, its key feature is that it can contract and stimulate not only the firmness of the skin’s surface but also deeper internal tissues.

As shown in the photo above, Serf can be performed using three modes by switching between Deep, Middle, and Shallow.

However, there is one important point that must be addressed in advance.

Serf is not a treatment that produces good results simply by applying the tip evenly across the skin.

Even with the same radiofrequency treatment, the results can vary completely depending on which areas are treated, at what depth, and with how much energy.

Ultimately, who performs the treatment and how it is performed have a major impact on the results.

2. Recommended cases likely to see good results from Serf

So, who is most likely to benefit from Serf?

Serf is particularly well suited to people in the early-to-middle stages of declining skin firmness, generally in their 20s and 30s,

that is, people whose jawline has just begun to lose definition and whose cheeks have started to sag slightly.

It may be easiest to understand it as a treatment that firmly holds the facial contours in place before they begin to deteriorate significantly.

Because the Serf tip is 1.5 times larger than the Thermage tip, we explain that receiving 600 shots provides an effect equivalent to receiving 800 shots of energy.

It is also worth recommending to people who have hesitated because they have heard that radiofrequency lifting is very painful.

The Serf device itself is equipped with a cooling system that cools the skin’s surface during treatment,

so the pain is relatively manageable, allowing many people to receive it comfortably without general anesthesia or sedation.

You can see that the staff member in the photo above received Serf very comfortably. Many people tell us that they were able to undergo it comfortably without anesthesia.

It is also helpful to know in advance how the results typically develop after treatment.

Serf is not a magical treatment that dramatically lifts the face immediately after the procedure.

Immediately afterward, you may feel immediate tightening and a smoother skin texture as the heat causes collagen to contract.

Then, as new collagen gradually forms, more noticeable improvements in firmness and facial contours appear over the course of two to three months.

In the photo above, the nasolabial fold on the right side of the person’s face (the left side in the photo) appears lighter immediately after treatment. This is often due to temporary contraction. In the long term, you can think of the result as a natural lift that develops as collagen is regenerated.

The condition usually continues to improve gradually for up to six months after treatment, and the results last for around a year.

Therefore, many people are most satisfied with how they look in the mirror two or three months later, rather than on the day of treatment.

(If you are curious about how the results compare with Thermage, please see the article below.)

However, even these favorable results do not come automatically.

Even with the same Serf treatment, the depth and energy used for each area must be adjusted carefully,

and the treatment must be performed using genuine tips with a sufficient number of shots completed thoroughly for the intended effects to appear properly.

For areas with thin, sensitive skin, such as around the eyes, we use the dedicated Eye Serf tip for a delicate approach.

For areas with more noticeable sagging, such as the jawline and cheeks, we adjust the tip and settings in real time and perform the treatment ourselves from beginning to end.

The photo above shows Serf’s largest tip. It is mainly useful for covering the lower face and broad areas of the face.

The level of detail in the results cannot be the same as when a patient’s entire face is quickly treated using identical settings from start to finish.

3. Cases in which Serf is not recommended

These are cases in which the results of Serf may be disappointing—in other words, situations where it may be more advantageous not to undergo this treatment.

First, people whose face appears broad because of the underlying cause—namely, the bone structure itself—rather than excess tissue such as fat or reduced skin firmness.

Serf is a treatment that improves the firmness of the dermal layer and the fat layer beneath it; it cannot reduce the size of the bones themselves.

Because these cases concern the facial skeletal structure, it is difficult to expect dramatic results from Serf.

Second, people whose skin has already become considerably saggy.

If the skin has stretched severely to the point that the jawline has lost its definition and folds have formed,

there are clear limits to what can be achieved by restoring firmness through thermal energy alone.

In such cases, it is appropriate to first consider a treatment that physically pulls the tissue upward, such as thread lifting.

Third, people who have lost too much facial fat, resulting in hollow cheeks and a sagging appearance.

This is often less a problem of the skin’s own firmness than a lack of the volume that needs to be restored.

Therefore, treatments that fill depressed areas, such as fillers, Juvelook Volume, or Sculptra, should be considered first.

Although Serf can stimulate collagen production, it cannot fill an empty area of lost volume on its own.

Finally, there are people who expect their face to look dramatically different after just one treatment.

As explained above, Serf is a natural-looking treatment in which collagen gradually builds up over several months,

so if you want an immediate and clearly visible change, you may instead be disappointed.

This is also why I personally examine and consult with patients before Serf treatment.

We need to carefully determine whether the cause of sagging in a patient’s face is truly reduced firmness, or whether it is due to the skeletal structure, insufficient volume, or severe skin laxity.

For people who genuinely need the treatment and are likely to see good results, we design the treatment appropriately.

For those for whom it is not suitable, we explain other alternatives that may use the same budget much more effectively.

(I also have a large collection of lifting devices for this reason: different devices are suitable for different faces.)

The various lifting devices available at our clinic

However, whether having many lifting devices automatically means that all treatments produce good results is a separate issue.

If you are planning to undergo a laser treatment, please be sure to read the article below before receiving it.

I wrote about why treatment records (charting) are important at a clinic and why these records determine the results of your treatment.

To summarize

Serf is certainly an excellent lifting treatment. However, it is by no means a universal solution.

It can be an exceptionally good option for people whose skin firmness has only just begun to decline,

but people whose concerns are caused by bone structure, insufficient volume, or severe sagging need an entirely different solution suited to the cause.

Therefore, if you are interested in Serf lifting,

the right first step is to accurately identify the true cause of the sagging in your face.

You can achieve satisfactory results only when the treatment is suited to the underlying cause of your concerns and is performed at a clinic that knows how to use the equipment properly.

Thank you. This has been Dr. Won-jin Cho.