This is a full guide for anyone looking to get an under eye fat graft done in Seoul, Korea.
We will cover everything you should know before scheduling the first consultation, including:
- Under eye fat graft prices in Korea
- Best Korean clinic for under eye fat grafting
- What is under eye fat and what results to expect
- Is Korea a good choice for an under eye fat graft
Let’s start off by first quickly going over what exactly an under eye fat graft is, what results you can expect from it and what the step-by-step procedure for it looks like:
Under eye fat grafting is a type of fat graft meant to improve the look of the under eye area. It can improve things like hollow under eyes, dark circles and sunken appearances which happen either due to old age or are just genetic traits.
A lot of young people are born with hollow under eyes and an under eye fat graft can change that appearance.
This before and after photo is a good example of the results you can achieve with an under eye fat graft:
Dermal fillers are a popular procedure to treat the same area. However, a fat graft is much more long-term (it lasts up to 15 years while dermal fillers last for 6 months in the under-eye area).
On top of that, it’s autologous, meaning the fat comes from the patient’s body. This reduces the risks of allergic reactions and complications which can be a big risk when it comes to dermal fillers.
Let’s go over the process of how an under eye fat grafting procedure would go:
Step-By-Step Procedure
Consultation: At the initial consultation you will talk with the surgeon about your desired aesthetic look of the under eye area. This is the time to ask the doctor any questions you may have about the procedure.
Pre-Procedure Preparation: On the day of the surgery, you will need to fast. This means you won’t eat or drink anything for at least 12 hours before the procedure starts. At the clinic, the nurses will mark the under eye area with a pen to help you illustrate where the fat will be placed.
Anesthesia: You will be administered general anesthesia in the operating room.
Fat Harvesting: The surgeon will harvest fat from your donor area which you and your surgeon selected during the initial consultation.
Purification: The harvested fat is then purified. This ensures that only the highest quality fat cells are used for the graft so that the most amount of fat cells can survive in the new area (the under-eye area).
Injection: The surgeon will use a special needle to inject the purified fat into the under eye areas.
Closure and Bandaging: Once the surgeon is satisfied with the placement of the fat and it looks natural, the incisions from the fat harvesting will be closed and bandaged.
Recovery: You will be moved to a recovery room where nurses will monitor you for a few hours before discharging you. Your surgeon will also give you some post-surgery instructions about recovery.
Follow-Up: You should schedule a follow-up appointment to assess the healing process and evaluate the final results of the under eye fat grafting.
Fat Survival Rate
The surgeon will transfer a slightly larger amount of fat to the under eye area during the procedure.
This is because not all of the fat survives. In fact, you can only expect about 50%-80% of the fat to survive which is why the surgeon transfers a larger amount so that the desired result can be achieved.
During the recovery period, you have to make sure you aren’t eating in a caloric deficit. This wouldn’t be good for the fat survival rate and it would likely minimize your results.
Recovery Time
The average recovery time for an under-eye fat graft is about 3 weeks.
You can expect all of the swelling to go down in 2 weeks with basically no swelling or signs of a plastic surgery procedure being left at 3 weeks.
However, the new fat will still be in the process of acclimating itself to the new area. Because of this, you expect to see the true, final results in about 8-12 weeks after the surgery.
Under Eye Fat Graft Price In Korea
The average price of an under eye fat graft in Korea is $1,500 (2,000,000 KRW).
However, the price can vary depending on a lot of different factors, most importantly:
- Desired look: Depending on the milliliter amount of fat required to achieve your desired look, the price may be higher or lower.
- Clinic: Some clinics, especially the more famous and reputable ones, have higher prices for under eye fat grafts. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean their procedures are of higher quality. We’ll go over the best under eye fat grafting clinics in Korea later in this guide.
- Additional procedures: If you’re getting any additional, complementary procedures along with the under eye fat graft, you will get a discount on the total price. We’ll talk more about this later in this guide.
Prices Compared To Other Countries
When we compare the prices of an under eye fat graft in Korea versus those in other countries, it’s clear that Korea is much more affordable.
This is because of a large number of plastic surgery clinics in Korea competing with each other made the prices very reasonable.
Here’s what you can expect to pay for an under eye fat graft in other countries:
- US: $4,000 (5,300,000 KRW)
- UK: $3,500 (4,700,000 KRW)
- Australia: $4,000 (5,300,000 KRW)
Save Even More Money In Korea
Getting an under eye fat graft in Korea is already budget-friendly. However, there are ways to make it even more!
Here’s what you can do to save even more money on under eye fat grafting in Korea:
Tax Refund
If you’re a foreigner you can claim a VAT refund at the airport once you’re leaving Korea.
This is an easy way to get a good chunk of money back and the only requirement is that you’re not a Korean citizen.
Before And After Showcases
Some clinics will offer you a large discount if you’re willing to let them use the photos of your under eye fat graft before and after for social media and advertising.
If you’re the perfect candidate, you can even get the whole procedure done for free. Make sure to ask the Korean clinic about this.
Paying In Full
If you pay for the whole under eye fat graft in full instead of paying in multiple installments, the clinic will usually be happy to give you a discount of up to 10%.
Discounts
Sometimes clinics offer discounts for certain procedures. Make sure to ask your chosen Korean clinic if they are currently offering any discounts for under eye fat grafting procedures.
Typically, clinics offer discounts in the form of promotions and package deals. They advertise those on social media a lot.
Additional Procedures
If you get any additional, complementary procedures done at the same time as the under eye fat graft, the clinic will give you a discount on the total price.
They do this because they save a lot of money on anesthesia, staff, and surgeon time.
Here are some of our recommendations for an additional procedure:
Of course, you should always consult your surgeon about which surgery will best complement your under eye fat graft.
Why Choose Korea For Under Eye Fat Grafting
Korea is known globally as the plastic surgery capital of the world. A lot of foreigners fly to Korea every year for plastic surgery procedures.
However, is Korea a good choice for under eye fat grafting?
Let’s break down the reasons why we believe that Korea is by far the best choice for under eye fat grafting.
Costs
As we already covered this topic in the “Price” section of this guide, getting under eye fat grafts done in Korea is a lot more affordable than in Western clinics.
On average, you can save between 35%-60% on under eye fat grafting in Korea compared to getting the same procedure done in the US, UK, or Australia.
There are a lot of plastic surgery clinics in Korea that all compete with each other for patients. This has made the prices of almost all plastic surgery procedures very budget-friendly.
Success Rate
Korean plastic surgery clinics have some of the highest patient satisfaction levels in under eye fat grafting in the world.
This means that patients who get under eye fat grafting done in Korea are considerably more likely to be satisfied with their results compared to patients who get under eye fat grafting done elsewhere.
A lot of people who had under eye fat grafting done in other countries fly to Korea to enhance or fix their results because they weren’t satisfied with their initial procedure.
Surgeon Experience
There are over 1,000,000 (1 million) plastic surgery procedures done in Korea annually.
Even though most of these are procedures such as double eyelid surgery, Rhinoplasties, and so on, still a large number of these are under eye fat grafts.
Korean surgeons have some of the most experience in the world when it comes to under eye fat grafting.
Most importantly, Korean surgeons are specialized. The ones that perform under eye fat grafting only do cosmetic eye surgeries.
In Western clinics, however, it’s common for a surgeon to do a wide variety of different procedures, like nose jobs and breast procedures.
Because Korean surgeons are specialized, they are some of the best surgeons in the world when it comes to fat grafting.
Best Under Eye Fat Graft Clinic In Seoul
One of the most important decisions on your journey to under eye fat grafting in Korea is choosing the right Korean plastic surgery clinic.
The huge amount of clinics in Korea can make this decision feel very overwhelming.
It’s important that you don’t just pick a random one or the cheapest clinic. The difference between a good, eye-specialized clinic and a general clinic can be massive.
There are a few important factors that you need to consider when choosing a Korean plastic surgery clinic for under eye fat grafting.
With our extensive experience, we put together a list of recommended under eye fat graft clinics in Korea. We verified these clinics by:
- Interviewing patients
- Research
- Background checks
- Personal visits and quality checks
To avoid having a botched surgery or an overpriced quote, the clinics from our list are your best choice for a successful under eye fat graft.
Reviews
These days online reviews are extremely important for all businesses, especially for plastic surgery clinics.
Because of this, it’s crucial that you only focus on real, verified, and authentic reviews.
Another important thing is to only focus on the under eye fat grafting reviews.
If a certain clinic has a bunch of 5-star reviews for Rhinoplasties but all of their bad reviews are for under eye fat grafting, it’s probably not the best choice for you.
Above is an example of a review about fat grafting. This one is for JK Plastic Surgery, one of the clinics we recommend for under eye fat grafting.
Look for detailed reviews that give you a sense of how the clinic works. The review above, although short, still gives some valuable information (result satisfaction, communication, facilities, etc.)
Clinic Specialization
If you want to choose a Korean clinic that will do a great job for your under eye fat grafting, make sure to focus your research on the clinic’s under eye fat grafting track record, patient satisfaction, etc.
Korean clinics that have an amazing track record with under eye fat grafting and that have very high patient satisfaction levels (we can get an idea from the reviews), can be considered as under eye fat graft specialized.
Clinics like that will have doctors who specialized only in cosmetic procedures for the eye area.
Price To Value
The cost certainly shouldn’t be your number 1 deciding factor when choosing a Korean clinic for under eye fat grafting.
However, you should still make sure that you are getting value in return for your money.
In fact, some of the most expensive clinics in Korea don’t necessarily do a better job at certain procedures, they might just be better at advertising. This is why it’s so important to focus on reviews and clinic specialization.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Korea is an amazing place to get your under-eye fat graft done.
It’s much more affordable compared to Western clinics (40%-60% more affordable) and more importantly, the surgeons are much more experienced in under-eye fat grafting and the patient satisfaction levels are higher.
Now that you’ve read this guide, you know everything you need to know about getting under-eye fat grafting done in Korea.
Make sure to check out our recommended under-eye fat graft clinics in Korea. Choosing the right clinic is the most important step on your journey and isn’t something you should blindly pick.
Reach out to us at info@seoul.clinic if you want a stress-free journey to an under-eye fat graft in Korea.
We have tons of experience in dealing with Korean clinics and plastic surgery in general and can help you avoid having a botched or overpriced surgery.
Within 48 hours, you will get a response from our team, and your journey to a stress-free surgery will begin.
FAQ
What is the average cost of an under eye fat graft in Korea?
The average price of an under eye fat graft in Korea is $1,500 (2,000,000 KRW).
However, this price can very widely depending on the clinic, desired result, additional procedures, surgery history, etc.
How long is the recovery time for an under eye fat graft?
The recovery time for an under eye fat graft typically ranges from 1 to 2 weeks.
After 2 weeks there shouldn’t be any bruising or swelling left. However, fat takes a while to adjust to the new area so you can expect the final results to set in after 2 or 3 months after the surgery.
Is getting an under eye fat graft in Korea safe?
Korea is one of the safest places in the world to get any plastic surgery procedures done, including under eye fat grafting.
They have some of the most experienced eye cosmetic surgeons in the world with the highest patient satisfaction levels.