MedEsthetics magazines offers business education and in-depth coverage of the latest noninvasive cosmetic procedures for physicians and practice managers working in the medical aesthetics industry.
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medestheticsmagazine.com | MAY/JUNE 2014 67 reading materials," he says. Technology has increasingly become a part of medical prac- tices, and Dr. Munvalli's is no ex- ception. "There has been a shift towards fi nding more computer- savvy people," he says. "We've looked in sources that you might not think to look, including Craigslist, and we're able to fi nd some great resumes." Meeting Demand The need for a solid support staff is critical when there is such a high demand for ser- vices—due to both a healthier economy and a wider availability of more affordable treatments. "In the past year, things have rebounded so much," Dr. Munavalli says. "People want to look their best, whether it's because they want to look competitive in the marketplace or they want to feel better about themselves. There are a lot of new things that were out of reach in the past." He highlights fi llers like Voluma XC (Allergan, allergan.com), which has become the go-to treatment for those who can't afford a facelift. "A couple of syringes of that, and you will swear that you had some type of lift done," he says. The injectable market is becoming more competi- tive, and Dr. Munavalli sees it as a good thing, because it gives patients more options. But the popularity of dermal fi llers and botulinum toxins has come at a price for patients in the form of unsatisfactory results. Dr. Mu- navalli regularly performs reversal treatments for people who come to him with poor outcomes from previous physicians. "Those are very challenging," he says. "We have to fi gure out what was done, and try to reverse that and then make them look better, if it's possible. They've lost confi dence in who is treating them. Those are diffi cult patients, because they've already lost trust in the system, in a sense. You have rebuild that trust and do more handholding. They're wary about what your recommendations are." Because he is based in a warm climate that often calls for skirts and shorts, another high demand treatment at his practice is vein therapy, specifi cally for varicose and spider veins. Dr. Munavalli is especially excited about the newest sclerosing agent, Varithena (BTG, varithena.com), which treats both bulging and varicose veins. He's been testing it in clinical trials for the past fi ve years, "so I feel very comfortable with it," he says. Another trial he fi nished recently was for CoolSculpt- ing (Zeltiq, coolsculpting.com) to treat enlarged male breasts, which "went very well," he says. "And we are in the process of getting a paper published on that." Another common concern in his area is underarm sweating. "It can be very debilitating," he says. "Up until maybe two, three years ago, all we could do was treat it medically. The fi rst wave of devices started appearing two years ago, to cosmetically treat this problem, and it's been highly effective." A High-Tech Practice In addition to offering a wide range of laser and energy- based treatments, Dr. Munavalli utilizes technology throughout his offi ce to improve patient education and satisfaction. "From the time the patient hits the door, there are images of what we can do as a practice," he says. "We have a really innovative system in terms of audio/video." "Those are diffi cult patients, because they've already lost faith in the system. You have to rebuild that trust." © MITCHELL KEARNEY Dr. Munavalli provides extensive training to new staff members before they take on any responsibilities within the practice. S o u t h e r n C o m f o r t M E D 5 - 6 1 4 . i n d d 6 7 Southern Comfort MED5-614.indd 67 4 / 1 6 / 1 4 4 : 5 2 P M 4/16/14 4:52 PM