Trish: Hey, podcasters. Well, I’m here today with Dr. Josip Lovrić. Now, Dr. Lovrić is a General and Cosmetic Surgeon who’s based in Croatia. We’re here at COSMEDICON Conference 2018, and he’s been presenting on a new device which is called the Romeo device. The treatment it’s for is to help stop snoring, so this is pretty exciting stuff. I know we all know someone who snores and drives us crazy, so this could be the solution. So welcome, Dr. Lovrić.
Dr. Lovrić: Thank you, Trish. It’s a great opportunity for me to be here with you in Australia.
Trish: Lovely. So tell us, what is this Romeo device, and how does it work?
Dr. Lovrić: Actually, it is the first fractional laser treatment for snoring. Now, 40% of the world’s population snores, so this is the first time that we have the solution in order to reduce snoring in amplitude and duration, minimally by 50%. In numbers, if you snore four hours and you do this treatment, and your snoring is reduced by 50%, that means that your partner will now be able to sleep for six hours. And six hours is the bare minimum of quality sleep for you to get rested in the morning and cope with the day ahead of you.
Trish: Now, I know what that’s like. My husband actually snores when he’s had a bit to drink.
Dr. Lovrić: Okay.
Trish: And it just drives me crazy sometimes.
Dr. Lovrić: So now we can help him.
Trish: Exactly.
Dr. Lovrić: You should come to Croatia so we can help him.
Trish: Yes. So tell me, how does it actually work, though?
Dr. Lovrić: Well, if you’re familiar with the fractional treatment, what it stands for is, actually that we are placing a large amount of energy deeply within the lamina propria of the soft palate. The effect that we have after the treatment is that your soft palate and uvula, which is situated back in the throat, are lifted and tightened, so when you are sleeping, you have that nice [inaudible 00:01:56] of airflow coming to your mouth, to your lungs. That is the reason why you won’t be snoring anymore.
Trish: Okay, so basically, when you snore, it’s when that little thing that hangs down at the back-
Dr. Lovrić: Vibrates.
Trish: Vibrates.
Dr. Lovrić: Vibrates. Yes.
Trish: And that’s what causes the snore?
Dr. Lovrić: Yes, among other things.
Trish: Okay. So with the laser, what you do is you kind of do it on the top of the mouth, at the back. Is that right?
Dr. Lovrić: Yes, you just create the McDonald’s sign on the back of your mouth. That lifts up that small thing that vibrates. It hardens it so it stays fixed during sleep so you won’t be snoring anymore.
Trish: Okay.
Dr. Lovrić: You will, but not at so high amplitude.
Trish: All right, and does it hurt?
Dr. Lovrić: No. The greatest thing is that it doesn’t hurt. It doesn’t require no anaesthesia, it has no downtime, and it has reproducible results. It’s great.
Trish: So how come every other laser hurts and this one doesn’t? Is it because it’s where you’re doing it, or-
Dr. Lovrić: Yes, it’s secret of the trade.
Trish: Okay. Okay. So it’s just because it’s actually in your mouth.
Dr. Lovrić: Yes.
Trish: Okay.
Dr. Lovrić: Fractional treatments are known on your face, right?
Trish: Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Dr. Lovrić: Because they are a bit painful, but skin has different anatomy than soft palate.
Trish: All right. And this laser has specifically been designed to just be used in the mouth for snoring?
Dr. Lovrić: Yes, this is the only fractional headpiece. It is unique in the world. The first fractional headpiece. Of course, the laser can be used for skin resurfacing, or, I like to say it’s skin resurfacing, with a different headpiece, but this is just a headpiece created specially to treat soft palate.
Trish: All right, and how long does the procedure take?
Dr. Lovrić: About 5 to 10 minutes.
Trish: Wow.
Dr. Lovrić: Yeah.
Trish: And do you have to get it down again and again?
Dr. Lovrić: You have to do two treatments four weeks apart. The third treatment can be done immediately after, or you can wait up to six months to get a third treatment. Touch-ups are basically one treatment per year, maybe two, depending on how loudly you are actually snoring.
Trish: Okay. So two treatments four weeks apart.
Dr. Lovrić: Yes.
Trish: And then a follow up treatment within six months.
Dr. Lovrić: Yes.
Trish: Okay, and then that should be-
Dr. Lovrić: Touch-up next year.
Trish: Okay, so it’s like a once-a-year treatment to fix up my snoring and just have a bit of a … Okay.
Dr. Lovrić: And it has a great name.
Trish: Romeo.
Dr. Lovrić: Yeah.
Trish: Exactly, because all the Romeos are snoring.
Dr. Lovrić: We had Juliet. Now we have Romeo, and it’s an amazing story. Romeo and Juliet, the outcomes are much better, and long lasting than the original love story.
Trish: Yeah, of course.
Dr. Lovrić: Yeah.
Trish: Well, that’s great. So I know that it’s just started in Australia now, so there’s probably not that many devices out there, but there’ll be a few practitioners around Australia. How long have you been using it for?
Dr. Lovrić: I was the guy that created the protocol, so at the moment, I’m the only guy in Europe that is doing this treatment, about a little less than two years, and it’s amazing. Everybody wants to do the treatment.
Trish: Yup, yeah, and I think … I’d love to get a real story off one of your patients as well but-
Dr. Lovrić: Sure.
Trish: Whose life has been improved. That’d be great.
Dr. Lovrić: Yeah. I mean, there are stories out there that are available.
Trish: Yeah. Yeah. Awesome. Well, thank you so much.
Dr. Lovrić: Thank you for having me.
Trish: No worries. So if you guys or ladies … or actually, probably a few ladies are looking for a treatment for your guys who snore, you can drop … and you want to find a practitioner that’s got the Romeo device, drop us an email to info@plasticsurgeryhub.com.au. Thank you so much.
Dr. Lovrić: Thank you so much.
*This transcript is taken from an interview with Dr. Josip Lovrić and Trish Hammond, founder of Plastic Surgery Hub. We have very gratefully reposted her work to inform and educate our customers. You can find more of Trish’s wonderful articles at: www.plasticsurgeryhub.com.au
Trish is a plastic surgery blogger. She is passionate about wellbeing, health and beauty, and doesn’t mind a little bit of ‘help’ from the amazing cosmetic and beauty procedures that are available today. Trish spends her days talking to women and men who are looking for suggestions and advice on procedures that are available to them. Cutting through the sales pitch and hype, a down-to-earth response on general information is what you will get.
