Zeno Tip Life and Replacement

Zeno Tip Life and Replacement

Zeno relies on carefully controlled heat doses in order to kill P. acne bacteria. After multiple cycles of heating and cooling a treatment tip can degrade and become unable to reach sufficient temperature, reducing the efficacy of Zeno's therapy. The Zeno Treatment Tips are therefore limited to 90 treatment cycles to ensure that the thermal efficiency cannot degrade to the point of preventing adequate treatment temperature. Once you reach the end of your treatment cycles with your treatment tip you will need to purchase a new replacement tip so your Zeno device will work at it's optimal level.

The science of heat applied to acne

With Tyrell's ClearPoint™ acne heat treatment technology, P. acne are destroyed by a process called heat shock response. Heat shock response is a reaction bacteria have to heat whereby they transcript a number of their genes and activate heat-shock proteins. These heat-shock proteins participate in the bacteria's death by causing the bacteria to self-destruct. P. acnes self-destruct in the acne lesion preventing infection and allowing the skin to return to a healthy state. Fortunately, the level of heat required is not sufficient to cause damage to the skin.

Tyrell performed numerous lab studies on P. acnes to assess the temperature range in which heat shock response occurs in this bacteria, including a waterbath and a thermal cycler study, known for accuracy to tenths of a degree. DNAtrix, Inc., a molecular pharmaceutical company jointly owned by Dr. Conrad and the Board of Regents of the University of Texas , performed the thermal cycler testing which was critical in determining if P. acnes ' heat shock response occurs below the point of heat damage of human skin. Futhermore, these tests were critical in assessing the rate of P. acnes death at various temperatures over time (temperature versus time). The results indicated significant death of P. acne at a temperature well below the thermic damage of human skin.