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Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic · 두한성형외과 DUHANISM · April 3, 2020
Under-eye fat repositioning # How to remove dark circles # Under-eye fat removal # Under-eye hollowing # Under-eye fat repositioning surgery # Eye fat removal # Under-eye dark circ...
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This page is an English translation of a Korean Naver Blog archive entry. For exact wording and source context, verify against the Korean archive original and the original Naver post.
Clinic: Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic
Original post date: April 3, 2020
Translated at: April 25, 2026 at 6:43 AM
Medical note: This translation does not guarantee medical accuracy or suitability for treatment decisions.
What are under-eye dark circles?!
Under-eye dark circles refer broadly to a darkened appearance under the eyes.
Dark circles can have a significant negative effect on the impression of the eyes,
so improving them can sometimes be more effective than double-eyelid surgery.
Although various treatment methods are available now, in reality most produce less-than-expected results.
The weak point of treatment is that it is performed without accurately identifying the cause.
Director Shin Duhan
In many cases, treatment is attempted using pigment lasers, but pigment lasers are used for capillary dilation or redness of the skin itself, and they have little effect on the red orbicularis oculi muscle layer beneath the skin, which is the cause of red dark circles.
The same applies to whitening agents.
Whitening agents can affect the skin itself, but they also have limits in treatment.
In cases where the dark circle comes from the orbicularis oculi muscle layer showing through, they usually have no effect at all.
What helps most in treatment is preventing the red muscle layer from showing through. In theory, thickening the skin so that the muscle layer is not visible would be ideal, but in reality there is no suitable way to increase skin thickness.
As an alternative, one can choose a method of injecting a substance beneath the skin layer so that the muscle layer is not visible, and the best option is to graft and lay down fat.
Micro fat grafting under the eyes has the advantage of naturally filling in sunken or depressed wrinkle lines and dark areas, restoring a brighter eye area.
Depressed wrinkle lines under the eyes refer to indented wrinkles that occur as shadows form under the eyes.
They are distinct from fine wrinkles, and the shadow creates contrast, making the under-eye area look darker.
Even in such cases, micro fat grafting under the eyes can fill in the shadowed wrinkle lines and restore a more youthful eye appearance.
Because fat is yellow in color, it can express the natural skin tone and cover the red muscle layer, diluting the red and creating a lighter appearance.
However, it can only be applied when the under-eye area is sunken. It is difficult to apply when the under-eye area is flat or, conversely, protruding.
If you absolutely want fat grafting in a protruding eye area, the orbital fat can be removed first and then fat grafting can be performed afterward.
Which method to choose depends on the practitioner’s experience. It is important to identify the exact cause and then perform the appropriate procedure.
Whether to remove fat, graft fat, or perform lower blepharoplasty should be decided after careful review. If a procedure is performed with the wrong indication, the effect may be minimal or may even have the opposite effect, so the practitioner’s experience is very important.
What types of under-eye dark circles are there?
Treatment method for under-eye dark circles - Col-fat fat grafting
Micro fat grafting takes root after fat is grafted, as capillary formation occurs around it.
The engraftment process takes at least 3 months. During that time, vascularization occurs, and some fat may disappear through melting or be lost due to compression from surrounding tissue.
In some cases, volume increase cannot be sufficiently achieved with fat quantity alone. To complement this, collagen is generated on its own to increase the survival rate of the fat while creating youthful, elastic skin and contours. This is Col-fat fat grafting.
Ultra-precise fat grafting using our own developed micro needles
The core of the micro needle is that the tip of the probe is precision-machined to induce collagen production during subcutaneous tunneling.
It also enables ultra-precise fat grafting with the Col-fat technique.
Because it has the advantage of allowing precise treatment in 1–2 mm increments even for very fine wrinkles and delicate areas such as under the eyes and above the eyes, it can be performed without issue even in difficult areas.
For correcting under-eye dark circles, a procedure using a micro probe can achieve an effective correction with almost no unevenness.
With tunneling using a micro probe and micro fat grafting using micro needles, even the most difficult under-eye procedures can be performed effectively.
Examples of treatment by under-eye dark circle symptom
What are the frequently asked questions and answers about treating under-eye dark circles?
Question) Which treatment method is best for dark circles?
Answer) Dark circles vary in shape and appearance depending on the individual.
It is not possible to say that one method is better than another.
The appropriate treatment differs from person to person depending on the cause and symptoms.
In some cases, fat grafting is needed; in others, removing fat can relieve symptoms; and in some cases, only lower blepharoplasty with skin excision can be effective.
In other words, it is important to perform the procedure that fits each eye area.
Question) I heard micro fat grafting under the eyes can make the area bumpy and has many side effects. Is that true?
Answer) Under-eye fat grafting is not a procedure just anyone can do.
As with all surgeries, the results vary depending on the surgeon’s experience and skill.
There are many clinics that perform fat grafting, but the number that do it properly can be counted on one hand.
Fat grafting is easy to perform but difficult to do well.
People may think of fat grafting as simple, but it absolutely is not.
In principle, fat grafting can only produce good results when it is performed accurately.
Different clinics use different techniques, and the results vary greatly depending on experience.
You may hear about or experience poor fat grafting and develop a negative impression, but if it is done properly, satisfactory results can be achieved with a single procedure.
Question) How is micro fat grafting under the eyes performed?
Answer) Under-eye fat grafting is one of the most delicate and technically demanding areas of fat grafting.
Therefore, if performed carelessly, side effects may occur.
To avoid side effects, every step of the process must be carried out precisely and in principle.
Fat should be harvested as finely as possible, impurities completely removed, and then the grafting area should be tunneled to secure space for the fat to be evenly distributed. After that, an appropriate amount must be finely and evenly grafted to achieve good results.
The grafting cannula uses a special cannula fitted with a micro needle of about 1 mm in diameter, allowing a very precise procedure.
It is best to receive treatment at a clinic with professional know-how and many successful cases.
Question) I have had pigment laser treatment several times, but why is it not effective?
Answer) Pigment lasers are lasers that respond to red color, and they are mainly good for people with red capillary dilation or red erythema in the skin.
They are effective for redness in the skin itself, but applying them to red dark circles under the eyes is difficult.
The reason is that the cause of the redness is not in the skin itself, but in the entire red muscle layer under the eyes.
No matter how much the red orbicularis oculi muscle layer is targeted with a laser, the red color cannot be changed.
As long as the muscle remains alive, the red color cannot change.
If the red muscle layer were completely burned away, the redness would disappear, but if the muscle were burned enough to disappear, it would cause a major burn under the eyes and leave a scar. Therefore, it is impossible to remove the muscle layer with a laser, and it should not be done.
Question) I removed fat, but the dark circles got worse. Why?
Answer) The main purpose of fat removal is to resolve protrusion under the eyes.
Sometimes depressed wrinkle lines below the protruding area create shadows, and people remove fat to eliminate them. However, if done incorrectly, it can easily have the opposite effect.
When fat is removed, the under-eye area often becomes more sunken than before the procedure.
A sunken eye area creates a shadow effect and looks darker.
Also, when fat is removed, the skin contracts and tightens, increasing skin density and making the skin tone appear darker.
Fat removal is best when the under-eye protrusion is severe and the protruding area shows strong redness.
In most other cases, the dark circles worsen, so caution is needed.
Question) How much improvement can I expect from micro fat grafting under the eyes?
Answer) The effects of under-eye fat grafting are fourfold.
It lifts sunken skin to eliminate shadowing, and because the skin expands through fat grafting, the skin tone can become lighter. During that process, fine wrinkles also improve, and by laying down yellow fat, dark reddish tones can be diluted and lightened.
Because symptoms differ from person to person, whether there will be an effect can only be judged through an in-person examination.
Usually, the procedure is performed only when it is judged that a 50–90% improvement in dark circles can be achieved.
If the expected result is judged to be below expectations, it may be better not to perform the procedure at all.
The goal of fat grafting is not to completely eliminate the symptoms, but to reduce and improve the current dark circles as much as possible.
Question) Can micro fat grafting under the eyes be performed at any clinic?
Answer) The under-eye area is a very delicate area because fat must be finely dispersed under thin skin in grain-of-rice-sized portions and grafted there.
Therefore, it differs from ordinary fat grafting in everything from selecting the harvest site to refining and grafting.
The success of the procedure depends on accurately and evenly grafting the proper amount using a micro fat grafting cannula that does not leave scars.
For this reason, it is difficult to expect good results without extensive experience and know-how.
Incomplete under-eye fat grafting can produce results that are worse than not doing the procedure at all, so caution is needed.
Question) What about using filler for depressed wrinkle lines under the eyes?
Answer) The skin under the eyes is very thin.
Unless the procedure is extremely precise, it is difficult to achieve satisfactory results, and post-procedure unevenness should not occur.
In the case of filler, the color is transparent, making it difficult to create a natural skin tone, and it is hard to create a soft contour after injection.
If the shape looks awkward, it is very difficult to remove.
By contrast, fat grafting creates a natural skin tone while correcting dark circles and expressing a natural shape. If performed precisely, unevenness almost never appears.
It is possible when the practitioner performs the procedure accurately.
Fillers are effective for improving fine wrinkles around the eyes or forehead, but using them under the eyes can cause many problems, so caution is needed.
Question) How much swelling and bruising occurs after micro fat grafting?
Answer) Swelling and bruising vary from person to person, but they usually disappear after about 1–2 weeks.
The under-eye area has many blood vessels, so bruising inevitably occurs after the procedure.
Bruising cannot be avoided, whether mild or severe.
If bruising occurs, it can only be covered with makeup until it disappears.
You should undergo the procedure with swelling and bruising in mind.
Question) Is a second procedure necessary after micro fat grafting?
The engraftment rate after fat grafting varies from person to person, but usually about 50% remains after 2–3 months.
Sometimes the engraftment rate is good and more than 80% remains, and sometimes less than 30% remains.
Because the variables affecting engraftment depend on individual constitutional factors, it is only after about 3 months that one can judge how much has taken root.
The need for a second procedure is decided based on the appearance after 3 months.
If the result of the first procedure is satisfactory, a second procedure is not necessary.
However, if the engraftment rate turns out to be unexpectedly low, a second procedure is sometimes performed.
What is Duhan Dark Circle Clinic’s 5-step solution?!
The key is accurate assessment and surgery for a variety of dark circle symptoms.
It is not simply about removing dark circles.
For younger and more beautiful eyes,
we operate a dark circle combo program and
an After care system for thorough management.
Director Shin Duhan
Thorough analysis based on extensive clinical experience and expertise in dark circles
Dark circles appear in various types, including sunken areas, protruding areas, wrinkles, pigmentation, and even blue veins.
At Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s Dark Circle Clinic, the surgical method also differs depending on the symptoms based on an accurate analysis.
In other words, for better results, selecting the surgical method based on analysis is very important.
There are several surgical methods depending on the type of dark circles, but they are broadly divided into three categories: Col-fat fat grafting, fat removal, and under-eye fat repositioning, and in some situations, fat removal and fat grafting are applied together.
Because dark circles must be treated while considering the amount of excess skin, the degree of muscle laxity, and even the skeletal structure surrounding the eyeball, only a highly experienced specialist can achieve good results in terms of what the eyes will look like after surgery.
In dark circle treatment, after an accurate analysis, how the surgery is carried out is very important.
Treating dark circles cannot address the fundamental cause of dark circles through under-eye fat removal or fat grafting alone.
Treating dark circles cannot address the fundamental cause of dark circles through under-eye fat removal or fat grafting alone.
The key is to remove the adhered under-eye grooves to eliminate the root cause of dark circles, and to create a brighter eye area and a more youthful face through laser pigmentation removal.
The dark circle combo program does not simply remove dark circles; it makes the entire eye area look younger and more attractive.
At Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s Dark Circle Clinic, various combo programs are offered along with dark circle treatment.
Combo programs are procedures and surgeries that are good to perform together with dark circle treatment.
After surgery, issues such as side effects and swelling that may occur due to improper patient care can be managed through Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s After care system.
Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s Dark Circle Clinic does its best to ensure there are no regrets from the beginning to the end of treatment.
Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s patented 5-step under-eye treatment is ~
Treatment is performed using one of five methods: "under-eye fat grafting, under-eye fat removal, under-eye fat repositioning, lower blepharoplasty, and under-eye vascular sclerosis." After consultation with a specialist, an appropriate surgical method is determined to improve the symptom of dark-looking under-eyes.
Director Shin Duhan
Dark circles appear with various causes and in various forms.
The most common symptom is protruding under-eye fat that shows through thin skin.
It can become especially noticeable under bright light.
Symptoms also worsen as the tear trough under the eyes (the depression that forms between the under-eye area and the front cheek, where the lower orbital bone can be felt and that area appears as a line-like hollow) becomes more pronounced.
Another cause is pigmentation within the skin under the eyes itself.
Because they arise from such diverse and complex causes, the solutions are also varied.
When the under-eye area is sunken, it is treated with fat grafting.
Under-eye fat removal surgery simply removes only the fat through the inside of the eye (the red tissue called the conjunctiva), so there is no visible external scar at all, swelling is minimal, and no recovery period is needed.
However, if there are multiple other causes, improvement may be achieved through under-eye repositioning or lower blepharoplasty.
For dark circle treatment, if you decide on surgery after consulting a specialist with extensive experience in under-eye surgery, you can achieve more satisfactory results.
What are the features of Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s Dark Circle Clinic?!
Dark circles are not simply a matter of removing and repositioning under-eye fat.
Because dark circles must be treated while considering the amount of excess skin, the degree of muscle laxity, and even the skeletal structure surrounding the eyeball, an experienced specialist can produce good results in terms of what the eyes will look like after surgery.
A board-certified plastic surgeon provides direct care with 20 years of experience and know-how.
Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s Dark Circle Clinic has designated this as a key treatment area since the clinic opened and has researched and developed it for 20 years.
As various medical fields have advanced, dark circle surgery has also made great progress.
Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s Dark Circle Clinic is also keeping pace by acquiring and developing new medical knowledge and techniques, leading a new paradigm in the dark circle field.
Designating dark circles as a specialized plastic surgery category at the time of opening in 2001 was an expression of confidence in dark circle treatment.
Since opening, it has continuously conducted research and presented at academic conferences, becoming a hospital with extensive know-how.
With pride as a leader in dark circle treatment, it is leading a new paradigm in the field of dark circles.
Customized 1:1 surgery by type
Dark circle surgery can be performed at any clinic, but there are not many that accurately analyze the patient’s type and choose the right surgical method accordingly.
Although people may think dark circle surgery is easy, it is not.
Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s Dark Circle Clinic is a clinic with extensive experience and answers for the treatment of various types of dark circles.
Accurate analysis of the various types of dark circles is essential.
The surgical method must change depending on the symptoms of the dark circles.
The surgery must take into account the muscles, skeletal structure, and skin in the under-eye area.
We provide ongoing care through an After care system, taking responsibility for beauty to the very end.
We have more than 25,000 clinical surgery cases.
People generally think dark circles are solved by removing or filling fat.
That is true in principle, but how much fat to remove, how much to remove, and where to add an appropriate amount of fat can only be answered through long surgical experience.
Through years of continuous research, Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s Dark Circle Clinic registered the trademark service rights for "COL-FAT" fat grafting.
COL-FAT fat grafting was developed through the Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic fat grafting method as the result of long-term research.
COL-FAT fat grafting is the intellectual property of Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic.
In general, many people only need dark circle surgery, but the ultimate goal is to pursue beauty.
Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic’s Dark Circle Clinic operates a dark circle combo program in line with this need.
The dark circle combo program is a program that can produce greater results by combining procedures that are good to perform together with dark circle surgery.
Continuous care is also provided after surgery.
After surgery, side effects and swelling that may occur due to improper patient care can be managed through the After care system.
A clinic that takes responsibility for a single connection to the very end! This is Duhan Plastic Surgery Clinic!^^
Dark circle surgery can be performed at any clinic, but there are not many clinics that accurately analyze the patient’s type
and choose the appropriate surgical method accordingly.
Although people may think dark circle surgery is easy, it is by no means easy.
It has experience with various types of surgery and the answers for them.
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