Shih!!!!! I would like to share a secret with you…By Dr.Kang

Shih!!!!! I would like to share a secret with you…

Do you want to know the best way to keep looking young??

Most people know about Botox, fillers, lasers, and lifting devices. Of course they all help to slow down or even temporarily reverse the signs of aging. But the biggest “bang for the buck” is getting rid of those unsightly puffy bags from the lower eyelid the moment they permanently enter into your life.

For some, the puffiness first appear in their early thirties…. For the lucky ones, as late as early to mid fifties. However, sooner or later almost everyone gets the baggy eyes rendering them to appear more tired, fatigued, worried, or even angry depending on their general facial expression. The degree and age of onset of puffy bags are usually a genetical set trait and usually one of the first signs of aging. The fancy term is called “pseudo-herniation of orbital fat” due to weakening of the eyelid muscle behind the skin allowing the fat to protrude forward….very much like someone with gut slowly protruding through weakened belly muscle, affectionally known as “beer belly”. And just like the way you can partly suck in that beer belly when you try to tighten your belly muscle, every time you smile, you can make your puffy bags partially disappear by tightening the eyelid muscle. So much so that after 40, you may hear from your friends that you should smile more often because you look happier and more energized. Just look at yourself in the mirror or look at friends or colleagues with and without the lower eyelid bags. The ones with the bags will always look a few years older than their age, while opposite holds true for those who are free of puffiness of their lower eyelid.

So, what’s the solution you ask? For most, just an hour in-office procedure is all it takes to permanently keep you looking younger than your age…. for the rest of your life. There I said it, and you can keep it a secret like so many people have in my practice over the last 25 years. Why a secret? Well it is a procedure with no visible incisional scar, so no one has to know about it…. I would rather you share this secret with your friends and refer me more patients, but then that is your prerogative.

So, how can a surgery be done without creating a visible scar? The trick is as long as you address the puffiness early in your life before the lower eyelid skin gets too loose, surgery can be performed from the inside edge of the lower eyelid using the “trans-conjunctival” approach. Just like the principle of liposuction, if adequate fat is removed behind the muscle, the elasticity of the skin will usually snap back into position. Here lies the “first”reason for addressing the puffiness early at its onset, before the outer skin gets too loose. The general cut off age where no visible scar surgery can be done is usually 45 or so but many people undergo surgery using this technique well into their fifties, either because they retain excellent elasticity of their skin or they simply don’t want any sign of undergoing surgery. The “second” reason for undergoing this surgery early is that the sooner you do it, you will remain younger looking even though the rest of your face undergo inevitable aging changes. Next time look at someone in their 50’s or 60’s with all their natural aging changes and, then carefully look if they also have puffy bags under their eyes. Those without the puffiness will always look more well rested, less fatigued, and younger looking.

Unfortunately, some patients who grasp this concept early in their 30’s and 40’s mis-understand the puffiness from their fat bag for their skin getting too loose. Consequently they receive the wrong procedure of primarily getting their skin cut and sutured upwards. Very often puffiness persist, some with greater tension, a lot like someone trying to fit into a tighter dress or pants. As a result, close to 40% of my lower eyelid surgeries are revision work to correct the first surgery done elsewhere. So please do your due diligence and at the time of consultation, make sure you and your Plastic Surgeon are on the same page as to exactly what type of lower eyelid surgery will benefit you the most.

Don’t worry that this procedure falls under the “surgical” or “invasive” category. Truth be told any procedure requiring needle entering your skin is at least semi-invasive. The catch is that over the past 25 years, I have continued to refine the surgical method such that it can be done like an in-office procedure under local anesthesia and only takes about an hour. There is usually no bruising and only minimal swelling requiring three days of rest at home with understanding no strenuous activity for the remainder of week.

Finally, If you are older than 45 and you feel you have lost significant elasticity of your eyelid skin, don’t feel you missed the boat on this stealth like surgery. I will simply combine the trans-conjunctival approach to remove the fat with pinching of excess loose skin which will result in a suture line underneath your eyelashes that becomes imperceptible within weeks. But during the initial healing period, the subtly visible line will be the give away that you were a bit tardy in addressing your puffy fat bags.

Please do your due diligence in seeking the properly trained plastic surgeon well versed in the lower eyelid surgery and take my advice in addressing the puffy bags under your eyes early on. You won’t regret it. In fact as I always tell my patients, if you are going to embark on one rejuvenation surgery in your lifetime, this is the procedure I would recommend.