With mask wearing being the new norm, your eyes are now the focal point of your face. Dr Karen Soh, medical director of Prive Clinic, tells you which aesthetics treatments can help reduce the look of dark circles and eye bags.
I make sure to get a good night’s sleep but lately, my undereye circles seem more prominent in the morning.
The skin under the eyes is thin and translucent, making the blood vessels easily seen – it’s that purplish or bluish tint. And it’s not just sleep – other factors cause it too.
For example, dark circles tend to stand out against fair skin. And when you lose facial volume through ageing, it can cast dark shadows on the undereye area. If you have little underlying fat supporting the area, dark circles can also stand out. A high-sodium diet can cause water retention, making dark circles look worse in the morning. Undereye fillers can volumise the area so it doesn’t appear so hollow, reducing the look of dark shadows. If the dark circles are due to skin discoloration, your doctor can also combine fillers with lasers and retinoid creams to enhance the treatment results.
The focus is on the eye area now that wearing a face mask is the norm. Here’s how to improve the way it looks.
Is there a difference between puffy eyes and eye bags, and can they be easily fixed with a good eye cream?
They are indeed different. Puffy eyes are caused by temporary swelling due to crying, allergies, or water retention from consuming too much sodium or alcohol. Using an eye cream containing caffeine, applying a cold compress or massaging the eye area can help reduce the puffiness.
On the other hand, eye bags are formed when the muscles around the eyes weaken with age, and the fat that helps support the eyes migrates into the lower eyelids. Radiofrequency treatments like Thermage Eyes or Exilis Elite can induce collagen production to lift and tighten the area; these can also be combined with fillers. There is minimal pain and downtime involved, and at Prive, ensuring patients’ safety and comfort while delivering results is our priority.
Having to wear a mask emphasises my crow’s feet. How can I make them less obvious?
Crow’s feet are due to a loss in collagen and skin elasticity. They can be dynamic (expression lines, such as from smiling) or static (the lines are always there).
For dynamic wrinkles, botulinum toxin injections temporarily paralyse the muscles near the eye area, to prevent expression lines from forming. An energy-based treatment like Thermage Eyes can also be added. It heats the collagen-rich layers under the skin and induces collagen remodelling to tighten and lift skin.
Static wrinkles are more severe, but we can pair Skin Boosters or Rejuran I with the above treatments. These injectables help repair and hydrate skin to reduce the look of wrinkles.
For more severe crow’s feet, we can use fillers to replace lost volume and fill in the deeper lines.
Looking bright-eyed
Prive Skinworks’ Indulgent Eye Mask contains vitamin E to nourish skin, helping to firm and lift the eye area. To improve results, remember to apply an eye cream after. It helps to lock in moisture, and seal in the mask’s nourishing ingredients. To buy, scan the QR code to take you to Prive’s new e-shop at priveaesthetics.com/shop.
Dr Karen Soh is best known as a trainer for Merz Aesthetics and Silhouette Soft threadlifts. She is recognised for her experience and skill across different modalities in aesthetics practice. With passion and a keen eye for detail, she balances the art and science of aesthetic enhancement, achieving natural-looking results safely and effectively.
PHOTOGRAPHY VERONICA TAY HAIR JIMMY YAP/KEMISTRY SALON MAKEUP LOLENT LEE MODEL PHOTO 123RF
