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The new Amavi Medspa celebrated its grand opening this past weekend in downtown Bay Shore.
Amavi opened quietly this July at 85 East Main Street, offering medical options for the skin and hair, such as thread lifts, botox, fillers, platelet-rich plasma treatments, coolsculpting and more.At the opening, owner and physician Lynnea Villanova touted Amavi’s brand-new coolsculpting machine, which freezes and kills fat cells in targeted areas, such as around the abdomen or under the arms.
‘This all is extremely popular … but the [coolsculpting] has just blossomed,” Dr. Villanova said. “And it’s extremely effective … it kills 25 percent of the fat cells it gets its hands on and the cells don’t return, so it’s very handy. People are always asking about it.”
Dr. Villanova, who lives in Brooklyn, has been a board-certified family doctor for over 25 years. She ran a practice in New York most of that time.
She ended up on Main Street in Bay Shore through contact with a physician assistant who had connections here.
Her expertise also includes acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine, she said.
“What I love about this current state of aesthetic medicine is that it relies a lot on your natural body mechanisms,” she said. “Botox is obviously a toxin — but the filler is the identical substance that’s in your joints. The coolsculpting is just thermal. And so much of the other techniques rely on your own body’s immune responses to wound healing.”
Among the small staff in Bay Shore is physician assistant Stephanie Cotter of Babylon, who got her start in medicine working in spinal surgery but had already begun moving into aesthetics when she found Amavi in July.
“A general practice P.A. would see patients, treat them, diagnose them,” Cotter explained, “and it’s exactly what I do here, except with cosmetics. And it’s not amoxicillin for a sore throat.”
At a medical spa, a patient’s full medical histories are taken into account before deciding on any course of action, whether that person is looking to target wrinkles, veins, spots or fat cells, she said.
“Typically people know what [product] they want, but it might not always be the best option for them,” Cotter said, so the medical staff might recommend a different approach.
The best part of the field is helping patients feel better about themselves, she said.
“I say if something bothers someone and there is a possible fix for them, to make them happier and to build their confidence, then let’s do it,” she said.
IF YOU GO
Amavi Medspa is located next to Salon VaVa NY.
photos by Michael White
