MonaLisa Touch - El Camino Women’s Medical Group

Do you experience vaginal dryness, burning, and painful intercourse? MonaLisa Touch is a new procedure that addresses these problems without hormones or surgery. El Camino Women’s Medical Group is excited to be the first office in Mountain View to offer this cutting edge technology. It is ideal for menopausal patients, post-menopausal patients, and breast cancer survivors who are often unable to receive conventional treatments for these debilitating symptoms.

The MonaLisa Touch is a medical laser that delivers controlled energy to the vaginal tissue. The laser itself provides one of the most advanced vaginal photorejuvenation techniques to relieve the most troublesome symptoms associated with vaginal atrophy, including vaginal dryness and painful intercourse. Menopause is often associated with an assumed decline in physiology and libido. Not all women experience menopause and perimenopause in the same way. For some, hormone replacement therapy may not be the best option, as there are potentially dangerous side effects. Now, there’s an alternative therapy for vaginal revitalization that can help millions of women who are suffering silently with minimal options.

We also now have the new narrow probe, only 1 cm in diameter, for patients who suffer from a very constricted vagina from severe menopause and/or breast cancer treatments.

Handouts

Patient Handout

What is vulvovaginal atrophy?

Vulvovaginal Atrophy (VVA), also known as the Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause (GSM), is the thinning, drying and inflammation of the vaginal walls due to a decrease in estrogen. Vaginal atrophy occurs most often after menopause, but can also develop during breast-feeding or at other times when the body’s estrogen production declines. A drop in estrogen levels can also happen during the years leading up to menopause (perimenopause), after surgical removal of both ovaries (surgical menopause), after pelvic radiation therapy for cancer, after chemotherapy for cancer and/or as a side effect of breast cancer hormonal treatment. For many women, vaginal atrophy can make intercourse painful. Naturally, painful intercourse reduces a woman’s sex drive.

Vaginal Atrophy symptoms include:

vaginal dryness
vaginal burning
discomfort or painful intercourse
vaginal discharge
genital itching
burning with urination
urgency with urination
increased amounts of urinary tract infections
urinary incontinence
light bleeding after intercourse
decreased vaginal lubrication during sexual activity and/or
shortening and tightening of the vaginal canal

How Does the MonaLisa Touch Procedure Work?

The MonaLisa Touch is a non-surgical, simple in-office procedure that uses a CO2 fractional laser to relieve some of the most common symptoms of genitourinary syndrome of menopause, or vulvovaginal atrophy. The MonaLisa Touch uses technology similar to that of aesthetic lasers. This laser light energy is inserted into the vagina and its laser pulse is designed to stimulate new collagen production in the vaginal walls so that they make more collagen, an essential ingredient to vaginal cell health. The laser revitalizes normal pH, regenerates new blood flow and lubrication is improved to restore the natural function of the vagina. If vaginal dryness, itching, painful sexual intercourse or urinary incontinence are affecting your life, the MonaLisa Touch can help alleviate the symptoms without causing pain or side effects or requiring any downtime.

Vaginal mucosal histological preparation stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E). A): Vaginal mucosa in basal condition.B): Vaginal Mucosa of the same patient one month after a Monalisa Touch™ treatment. The improved epithelial cell tropism is clearly visible (resulting in epithelial thickening), with considerable accumulation of glycogen from the deepest part of the intermediate layer.

What to Expect During MonaLisa Touch Treatments

MonaLisa Touch laser vaginal revitalization is an outpatient non-hormonal procedure that is performed in a doctor’s office. The laser application itself lasts less than five minutes! Three or four appointments spaced about six weeks apart are recommended to achieve the best results, but many patients will begin to notice improvement immediately following the first session. MonaLisa Touch treatments are not painful, but an anesthetic cream can be applied to reduce any discomfort experienced during the procedure. Patients should avoid sexual activity for a few days following the procedure, but can otherwise resume their normal routines without experiencing any downtime. Contact El Camino Women’s Medical Group today to learn more about how the MonaLisa Touch can help improve your gynecologic health! We also now have the new narrow probe, only 1 cm in diameter, for patients who suffer from a very constricted vagina from severe menopause and/or breast cancer treatments.

Testimonials

Interested in learning more about the Mona Lisa Touch?

Contact El Camino Women’s Medical Group today to learn more about how the MonaLisa Touch can help improve your gynecologic health!our office for a consultation or to start treatment. You can also email Shar directly for more information.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Issue

Even with the passage of time, many women still retain their youthful energy and enthusiasm, but post-menopausal changes can affect a woman’s quality of life in unexpected ways. Now, there is a gentle laser therapy that can help millions of women who are silently suffering.

What is the MonaLisa Touch?

The MonaLisa Touch is a gentle laser therapy that delivers controlled energy to the vaginal wall tissue. It restores gynecologic health by generating new collagen, elastin and vascularization. The MonaLisa Touch was first available outside the US where more than 20,000 patients have been treated worldwide.

How does it work?

The MonaLisa Touch uses gentle laser energy that is delivered via a side-firing probe inserted into the vaginal canal. A two-part pulse targets surface (epithelial) tissue and deep (lamina propria) tissue to promote vaginal mucosal revitalization.

What clinical trials have been conducted on the MonaLisa Touch?

A multi-site study was conducted by Dr. Mickey Karram, Director of Fellowship Program on Female Pelvic Medicine & Reconstructive Surgery at The Christ Hospital, Cincinnati, OH and Dr. Eric Sokol, Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Stanford University Medical Center.

The trial assessed the use of CO₂ fractional laser therapy on 30 women with gynecological health issues due to natural or induced menopause. All of the patients in the trial were treated with the MonaLisa Touch laser therapy. Results were:

Overwhelmingly positive and immediate results
Highly statistically significant improvement in symptoms after the first treatment
Escalation of progress with each subsequent treatment

*Women in the study either experienced natural menopause or induced menopause as the result of a hysterectomy or drug-induced suppression of ovarian function (chemotherapy, radiations, and anticancer drugs such as Tamoxifen).

A study was done by Dr. Stefano Salvatore*, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vita- Salute San Raffaele University to assess the feasibility of fractional C0₂ laser in the treatment of 50 women suffering changes in their gynecologic health.

42 patients (84%) showed significant improvement in their physical and mental quality of life scores over baseline and were satisfied with the treatment. Gynecologic symptoms were significantly improved.

Where can I have this done?

The MonaLisa Touch is an in-office procedure performed by gynecologists, urogynecologists, and urologists.

Does the procedure hurt?

The procedure requires no anesthesia. Some patients may experience some discomfort the first time the probe is inserted, but the actual treatment is not painful. Many patients report that it feels like a gentle vibration. We also now have the new narrow probe, only 1 cm in diameter, for patients who suffer from a very constricted vagina from severe menopause and/or breast cancer treatments. For these patients, it is used at the first treatment and by the second treatment, we expect the vagina to be able to have improved enough to accommodate the normal 2 cm probe.

How long does it take?

Patients receive three treatments, spaced six weeks apart, which each take less than five minutes to perform.

When will I see results?

Most patients feel improvement after the very first treatment, although the procedure calls for three treatments that are generally spaced over an 18-week period.

How long does it last?

Patients should expect to come back annually for maintenance treatment.*

*Your doctor will determine with you if follow up treatments are required.

What are my limitations after the procedure is done?

Patients should refrain from sexual activity for 2-3 days. Your doctor will determine a post-procedure regimen that is right for you.

For which patients is this treatment appropriate?

The MonaLisa Touch is appropriate for any female who has gone through menopause, as well as those who are experiencing post-menopausal symptoms as a result of a hysterectomy or breast cancer treatments.

How much will the procedure cost?

Contact our office for further details.

Is this procedure safe for women with breast cancer?

Yes, the MonaLisa Touch therapy is particularly well suited for patients who cannot, or prefer not to receive estrogen therapy.