You look young for your age. You’ve done a great job taking care of your skin, slathering on moisturizers nightly and sunscreen daily. You even use eye cream. Still, various factors, from eye strain to dehydration — and even just plain old aging — cause dark circles to appear under your eyes. What to do?
If you exhaust the at-home treatment options and find you still have dark circles, you may want to seek medical treatment for a more effective and permanent solution.
Causes of Dark Circles Under Eyes
Genetics
Dark circles under the eyes can be an inherited trait visible even in early childhood. It may get worse or better as you age. If you are predisposed to other medical conditions, like thyroid disease, you may also develop dark circles.
Aging
As you become older, your skin gets thinner while losing fat and collagen needed to maintain elasticity. All these factors make the dark blood vessels beneath the skin more visible, giving you the appearance of dark circles under the eyes.
Eye Strain
Another thing that makes the blood vessels under your eyes more visible is eye strain. If you spend significant time staring at the computer or TV, the blood vessels around your eyes can become enlarged and show more.
Allergies
Allergic reactions and eye dryness can trigger dark circles. Histamines released during allergy attacks can cause the blood vessels to dilate and become more visible beneath the skin. Also, when you rub your itchy eyes, you cause swelling, irritation, and broken blood vessels which result in dark shadows under the eyes.
Sun Exposure
Too much sun can cause the skin to produce excess melanin. You may experience hyperpigmentation of the skin around the eyes.
Dehydration
Dehydration is a frequent cause of dark circles. When your body does not get enough water, your eyes look sunken in and the skin under your eyes looks dull.
Fatigue
Lack of sleep — or oversleeping — can cause dark circles to form under the eyes. Sleep disturbances make your skin dull and pale, causing blood vessels to show. It also causes fluid to build beneath the eyes, making them look puffy.
Is There Surgery to Remove Dark Circles Under Eyes?
Non-Surgical Blepharoplasty and Fillers
As a good first line of defense, or for those not ready to experience surgery and when there is volume loss/hollowing, Dr. Zoumalan offers non-surgical blepharoplasty to treat dark circles under the eyes. Non-surgical blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery) is performed with injectable fillers to refresh and rejuvenate the eye area. In cases of true fat pad herniation (prominent fat pockets), eyelid blepharoplasty may be a better option.
Dr. Zoumalan specializes in surgical and non-surgical blepharoplasty procedures. Oftentimes, other non-surgical procedures can be incorporated to create a customized experience. Skin resurfacing treatments like microneedling, fractionated CO2 laser, or a chemical peel can be done at the same time. These treat fine lines, introducing collagen to thicken the eyelid skin and improve eyelid wrinkles.
Lower-Lid Blepharoplasty
Lower eyelid surgery or blepharoplasty improves the appearance of the under-eye area by addressing the fat pockets that are prominent, which can result in dark circles. Dr. Zoumalan may combine the eyelid surgery fat repositioning to help improve the under eye hollowing which can often occur at the same time through a minimally invasive approach which often leaves no visible sign of an incision.
Natural-Looking Blepharoplasty
Over the past ten years of performing cosmetic eyelid surgery, Dr. Zoumalan has evolved his technique into what he now describes as a Natural Looking Blepharoplasty®.
This method uses advanced techniques that decrease recovery time and maximize results, so patients look like they never had surgery.
Rather than remove excess fat, Dr. Zoumalan repositions it in the surrounding cheek/eyelid area to improve hollowing. Additionally, he may use fat grafting (using fat from other parts of the body) to further reduce hollowing and increase volume. There is no visible scar with this approach, nor any change in eyelid shape. As important, the recovery time is minimized, and patients can return to work in usually a week. The surgery itself is a minor procedure, with some discomfort the first day, but otherwise very well tolerated by Dr. Zoumalan’s patients.
Surgery to Remove Dark Circles Under Eyes
Dr. Christopher Zoumalan is a graduate of UCLA, and the University of Wisconsin–where he graduated in the top 1% of his class, Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Zoumalan also trained at world-renowned plastic surgery institutions NYU and Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons. Dr. Zoumalan now practices in Beverly Hills, where he specializes in surgical and nonsurgical eyelid procedures. He is a caring and compassionate physician who takes great pride in giving his patients the results they desire. For more detailed information on the Natural Looking Blepharoplasty® technique and other treatments for your specific case, contact our Beverly Hills practice today at 310 946 0213.
