A Barrington plastic surgeon has filed a class action lawsuit against the makers of the Ultrashape Power device, which purportedly โ€œuses pulsed, highly focused ultrasound energy to target and permanently destroy unwanted fat cells,โ€ accusing the company of falsely promising the system would help patients quickly lose dress sizes and centimeters from their circumference.

On Dec. 2, Renee Burke, who operates a private plastic surgery practice in the northwest suburb, filed suit in Cook County Circuit Court against Wayland, Mass.-based Candela Corporation, alleging the company violated Illinois state consumer fraud laws when promoting its UltraShape System.

According to the complaint, Burke has used the system since May 2015, treating โ€œdozens of patientsโ€ with the system.

According to the UltraShape website, the system is the only non-invasive โ€œbody sculptingโ€ treatment approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to target fat cells. The company lists the product as a โ€œcomfortable,โ€ non-surgical alternative to liposuction and other surgical techniques to reduce body fat deposits that are โ€œresistant to diet and exercise.โ€

Burke said she purchased and began using the product on patients partially in response to what she said were UltraShape marketing materials declaring patients โ€œwould โ€˜lose two dress sizes in just three treatmentsโ€™ and that โ€˜clinical studies showed an average 3.3-6.3 cm reduction.โ€™โ€

However, Burke said โ€œthe representations were not trueโ€ and the patients she treated with UltraShape โ€œdid not realize the results promised byโ€ UltraShape.