Korean Double Eyelids Surgery: Guide To Different Surgical Methods
Did you know that it only takes 5 seconds to form a first impression? The eyes are one of the most important parts that determines the first impression because that's where someone's gaze will meet and linger. This is why some people look into eye surgery to change their image.
But when you look at eye surgery, there's a lot of different methods, a lot of confusing terms, and it's hard to judge for yourself what kind of surgery is suitable for yourself.
To answer these questions in more detail, we talked to Dr. Do Eon-rok from 1mm Plastic Surgery, which is famous for eye surgeries. 1mm Plastic Surgery is a plastic surgery powerhouse located in Gangnam and has received more than 6,000 reviews in Korea.
Dr. Do Eon-rok from 1mm Plastic Surgery
Director Do Eon-rok, Representative Director of 1mm Plastic Surgery, is an academician of the Korean Academic Association of Oculoplastic Surgery. He regularly attended the conferences held by the Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons (KSPRS) in 2019 and 2020. He was selected as the best member in 2019 by the Korean Association of Plastic Surgeons.
What kind of problems do patients usually face when they visit?
Dr. Do: In general, younger patients tend to look for improvements in the eyes they want to have. Westerners prefer almond-type eyes like Kim Kardashian and Rihanna, and Asian people bring pictures of Hallyu stars or their favorite bloggers.
They also get eye surgery in hopes of relieving certain discomforts, such as small size of eyes, excessive fat in eyelids or weakness in the eye muscles that make it hard to open their eyes, and eyes that look stuffy or sleepy.
Middle-aged people look for anti-aging blepharoplasty to resolve issues such as sunken upper eyelids, under-eye bags, and eyes that look tired from dark circles or sagging skin.
Among the various areas of surgery, many Eunogo patients, mainly from Indonesia and Singapore, are interested in eye plastic surgery. Even if two patients are of the same age and race, there can be differences in the method, content, and cost of surgery for each patient. Can you explain why?
Dr. Do: While eye plastic surgery has become so common that many people think of it as an easy procedure to get, it actually makes a big improvement in one's image depending on where the difference has occurred, even changes as small as one millimeter. Therefore, eye plastic surgery is very delicate, demanding, and can cause unnatural consequences or fatal side effects with a single mistake. The best way to avoid revision surgery and obtain good results on the first surgery is to get a personalized surgery.
We have to consider the individual's eye shape, face shape and facial features, to determine the ideal height and shape of eyes that best suits the individual's face. The surgery method will also vary significantly depending on the patient's condition and preference, as well as the shape and angle of the eyes, amount of fat, sagging skin and thickness of skin.
Can you tell us more about the personalized eye surgery that you explained earlier?
Dr. Do: I'm going to explain using a few before and after photos, to help you understand better.
Case 1:
Patient Information: This patient has thin skin, and the distance between the eyes and eyebrows is relatively close. The patient prefers outfold which looks fancier.
Procedures: Natural adhesion, upward epicanthoplasty
This patient wanted a more Western-looking, doll-like outline. When creating an outline double eyelid, you should consider the differences in the structure of the eyes and skin thickness between Westerners and Asians. We had to get rid of the epicanthic fold (also known as Mongolian fold) in the front to create the outline. The patient was worried that the gap between the eyes might become narrow due to the removal of the epicanthic fold. After the epicanthic fold is removed and a 45 degree angle is created in the inner corner, I focused on creating a natural and attractive eye shape with the natural adhesion method. This was done by increasing the height of the double eyelid line while considering the distance between the eyes and the eyebrows.
Case 2:
Patient Information: This patient has thin skin and does not want incisional surgery. There is no sagging skin, but there is a lot of fat on the eyelids, so the double eyelids are covered/hidden. The patient prefers double eyelids that look more distinct.
Procedures: Natural adhesion, fat removal
Excess unnecessary fat tissue is removed through a small hole without a complete incision in the eyelid. Also, the natural adhesion method tightly binds the tissue to create a new double eyelid line. The natural adhesion method is a double eyelid surgery method that uses the tissues within the eyes to create an additional line of adhesion on top of the thread used. It maintains the naturalness of the burial method which relies only on the thread while minimizing the risk of loosening.
Case 3:
Patient Information: This patient has thicker skin and more fat on the eyelids. She hopes to improve the stuffy and sleepy image of her eyes due to the weak eyelid muscles. She wants natural-looking infold double eyelids.
Procedures: Incisional double eyelid surgery, ptosis correction, epicanthoplasty, fat removal
Incisions are created delicately on the skin to remove excessive muscles and fat to create clear double eyelid lines. At the same time, ptosis correction and epicanthoplasty is done to increase the height and width of the eyes, which had been covered by the excessive skin.
Case 4:
Patient Information: This patient wanted larger eyes with a softer image.
Procedures: Lateral canthoplasty, lateral hotz (outer corner lowering)
These two procedures increased the exposure of the sclera (white visible portion of the eyeballs) and helped her to look more awake.
Lumpy and uneven fat under the eyes due to aging can make you look more tired and be inconvenient to cover up with makeup. For patients who experience this problem but don't have saggy eyelids or are averse to incisional surgery, a small incision can be made in the inner parts of the conjunctiva (pink membrane under your skin). This is known as 'under-eye fat repositioning' and is a way to improve the lumpiness without any visible scars.
It is most important to considering the individual characteristics that affect eye shape, such as the slope of the patient's eyes, distance between eyes and eyebrows, distance between the eyes, height of the nose, and degree of protrusion, as well as the patient's preferences to personalize the eye surgery.
Dr. Do at the 2019 conference held by the Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons (KSPRS)
Thank you Dr. Do for your detailed and professional explanation. I think this is really useful for many people. Lastly, is there anything you want to say to customers of Eunogo?
Dr. Do: Looking at the steadily increasing number of foreign customers' enquiries, I can feel the interest in K-pop and K-Beauty growing day by day. For foreign patients, they come a long way for treatment because of the expectations for Korea's high-quality medical technology. Rather than guaranteeing a spectacular outcome during consultation, I usually approach these customers through consultations based on precision and delicacy down to a millimeter, to help them seek natural beauty that suits them. Hopefully, a world free of coronavirus where customers can travel freely and meet their friends and family as much as possible will come soon. I look forward to seeing you soon and please take care of your health.