K Couture's guide to seoul plastic surgery

[bubble2525]

Has anyone heard of misooda before?
It's a website with clinics information, promotions and also some reviews
Is this similar to docfinder?
Can we even trust the reviews with pics posted on that website?

 

[oliviacom]

Bubble2525 said: ↑

Has anyone heard of misooda before?
It's a website with clinics information, promotions and also some reviews
Is this similar to docfinder?
Can we even trust the reviews with pics posted on that website?

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I'd never heard of misooda. I knew Docfinder had much more experiences and sucessful cases then the other similar and small agency. My friends and I used Docfinder to have surgery done in Korea. So we trust only using them but not other agencies. And regarding to those promotions, Docfinder will help patients out to bargain the price, sometimes promotions are fake and not trustable. It's only my point of views but hope it's help

 

[kh0404]

Bubble2525 said: ↑

Has anyone heard of misooda before?
It's a website with clinics information, promotions and also some reviews
Is this similar to docfinder?
Can we even trust the reviews with pics posted on that website?

Click to expand...

Hummm...me either

I've heard others but not this one which you mentioned (　ﾟдﾟ) I can't tell whether it's similar as DFK... kkk
But~I can share with you my story about why I decided to use DFK to go with me for my 2nd PS~ just because it's popular, I agreed what @OliviaCom said~DFK has lots of experience and I also felt satisfied with them for my 2nd ps till I left korea... actually at that time I planned to stay in korea around 1month, even though it just took 7-10 days to do stitches removal and they could finish my case...but I still kept in touch with my road manager during the time I stayed in korea (⌒▽⌒) seems like I kept bothering my road manager huh~(о´∀`о) hahaha~

But DFK they are still very kind & friendly to me till now, now we are just like friends~we talk about fashion~ cosmetics~ Kpop stars~ drama or my recovery conditions now~

Well, at the first I also as ur thought, "is it true?" or "should i trust?" or "do I need them?" But~ seems I made a good choice with DFK, because I thought my result is good enough as my expectation tho, btw, they also tried to help me to bargain with the clinic, maybe u also can consider about them~ just my own experience la~ （╹◡╹）

 

[bubble2525]

i havent heard any good and positive genuine reviews from docfinder to be honest

 

[_ava]

Bubble2525 said: ↑

i havent heard any good and positive genuine reviews from docfinder to be honest

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I agree. They all sound too good to be true like the reviews from youtubers. Anyone that leaves bad reviews about them on here immediately gets attacked by others claiming how wonderful they are. I'm skeptical.

 

[christiev]

K Couture said: ↑

*Section 2 continued

Double Eyelid Incisional vs Non Incisional

Both methods are considered non invasive procedure. However, commonsense will tell you that the non incisional is the less invasive of the two. Scarring is a concern for those who consider the incisional method. There are things to do to alleviate scar formation. Some options are applying kelocote or using kenacort scar dissolving injections. Anyways here are a few points to take note of:

a) Incisional is more suitable for individuals with excess fatty tissue and thicker skin.

b) Ptosis can also be done with non incisional.

c) For the non incisional method, risk of stitch coming loose is not significant but can happen. However, the dual stitch method greatly reduces the chance for this to occur. This method applies the stitches like that of a net which firmly secures the tissues in place.

Note: regardless of whether it is incisional or non incisional, there will always be natural asymmetry. No one's eyes are perfectly symmetrical.

Jaw/Mandible Reduction

This procedure can be done using different methods, depending on the degree of correction warranted. Note that this procedure only changes SHAPE not width UNLESS the muscle is physically excised out too. Many surgeon would not want to do this as it poses further risk of complications for an already invasive procedure. To add, botox works perfectly well to shrink the muscles by temporarily paralysing them, therefore reducing width of the lower facial region. Things to note about this procedure:

a) You must do an x-ray and ct, preferably a 3d ct scan to determine that you are a candidate for the procedure

b) Sagging is guaranteed. The degree to which sagging occurs depends on whether the patient is a candidate and how much bone has been resected. Remember the way your facial tissues is currently is due to your preexisting structure. Reduce it and sagging is bound to occur. Your concern in this respect should be the visibility of sagging. For example, younger patients will have sagging but less visible than older patients as their muscles are stronger. However, sagging will occur faster with age since the bone structure has been manipulated.

c) Find a conservative surgeon as even the slightest bit that has been over reduced can increase the sagging effect. I was 19 when I first had this procedure done. The surgeon removed too much bone AND I was not a good candidate for the procedure. What occurred was significant sagging and I later had to get a concentric malar lift to the mid face region to shift the sagging tissues in the lower facial region to the mid face region. Essentially it took another invasive procedure to alleviate the problem caused by the first invasive procedure.

d) Be mindful that surrounding the jawbone, are plentiful motor and sensory nerves. There are risks to temporary damage and permanent damage. Permanent damage of motor nerves will leave the patient in a stroke like condition. So again, find a specialized surgeon to perform this procedure and really understand the dynamics of this procedure before going ahead with it.

Zygoma Reduction

This can involve the lateral (side), 45 degree and or the front cheekbone. Can be done by shaving, fracturing or resection depending on the patient's requirements. Refer to the above points I made regarding things to note of for mandible reduction as they all apply to zygoma reduction too. Again, select a conservative surgeon for this procedure and really understand the dynamics of it before going ahead. Your facial bones are like a tent. When the central structure is erected, the tent is held in place. However when the central structure is removed, the tent falls downwards. Same principle with your cheekbones. Some surgeons will also lift the facial muscles at the same time as the reduction but this is not guaranteed to alleviate sagging.

Fat Graft

Fat is taken out from harvest sites, processed and then transplanted into the targetted region. Harvest sites tend to be most commonly from the abdomen and/or thighs. I chose to harvest mine from the abdomen as I experience frequent hyperpigmentation and keloid scar formation. By having the harvest performed at the abodomen, the incision is done through the belly button and hence poses no risk of noticable scarring. Often is the case where after 3 months, whatever remains belong to the patient. I personally retained around 60-70 percent of my fg at the 3 month mark. That is why this procedure is said to be semi permanent. A few things to note about fatgrafts:

a) Individual resorption rates vary from patient to patient. Surgical technique obviously plays a factor too but the unpredictability lies with the patient's body.

b) When areas with frequent muscle movement have been transplanted with the fat graft, there is a risk of the graft being dispersed and dying. Depending on the area, botox helps. I experienced dents on my post op day 3 for my forehead fatgraft. This is due to my habit of frowning and squinting my eyes while i give people the evils lol...Dr Park's solution was to temporarily paralyse the muscle with botox. The result was 2-3 days later the dents were gone.

c) DO NOT SMOKE. Fat graft requires ample circulation for survivability. Smoking will guarantee you to lose significant volume, even after the 3 month mark!
d) *Important: Find a clinic which provides a free or heavily discounted FRESH 2nd top up within at least 8 months. The gimmick for many clinics is that they provide a free top up through COLD STORAGE within the first 3 months. Fat survivability is much lower when taken from cold storage. It is the same principle behind the coolsculpt "fat freezing" weight loss machines. Also, if a patient requires a top up within 3 months then the surgery was not performed properly. A top up should only be required at least 6 months down the road.

Concentric Malair Lift

This is a midface lift performed through either the lower eyelids of intraorally. It grabs the surrounding sagging soft tissues/muscles and secures it to the mid facial region. Individuals with thicker skin should be mindful that it can cause chipmonk cheeks (mariah carey much? ). Healing process is also long. When I had it done, while most superficial swelling dissipated within 3 weeks, the residual swelling took nearly 8 months to fully go down. This recovery period was much like my jaw reduction. Note however can results can be seen after 3 weeks. An issue we should be mindful of with the mid face lift is the slanting effect it can cause on the eyes. So for individuals with thick skin and fatty tissue should find another procedure more suited to them. Just look in the mirror and gently push your midface upwards. You should notice a slight slanting on the eye.

Hydroxyappatite Granules

This type of implant can be used for the chin, jawline and other facial regions for contouring. It is an extract from corals (which is structurally similar to bone), turned into a fine granule form and mixed with the patient's blood into a putty form. The surgeon then moulds the putty into the patient's facial structure. Great thing about this implant is that it can be scuplted by following the patient's facial structure. Limitations is that few surgeons can perform it and thus if for whatever reason removal is warranted, few can remove it too. Anyone considering this method should look to Bryan Mendelson, the surgeon who pioneered the technique. I had it done as a chin revision, jaw line contouring and inconjunture with my mid face lift with excellent results.

Buccal Fat Removal

This procedure is performed through an incision at the inner cheekwall. The fat pad of a golf ball size is then slowly teased out. It cannot be physically pulled out because the surrounding areas has too much sensory and motor nerves. Doing so may risk rupturing. This procedure can cause premature sagging depending on the condition of the patient. For example, individuals who do not have really fatty faces to begin with, who seek the gaunt haute couture look will find themselves aging faster. Facial fats at the end of the day do help maintain a youthful appearance. Also, those with NOTICABLE assymetry (everyone's face is somewhat assymetry to varying degrees) should avoid this procedure as it can exacerbate the assymetry.

Acculift

Effective procedure for facial fat reduction. Performed through a fine wire and tiny incision made at the nasal labial creases should the procedure be targetting the cheek or lower jowel region. It is minimally invasive and works by melting the fat. While some of the fat is removed through a suction, most of it is melted. What occurs is that your body naturally flushes out the melted fat as excretion within the coming weeks. When I had this procedure done my face began to contour and slim down for the course of the following month. While I am very satisfied with this procedure I must add that those who expect a true lift out of this surgery should look elsewhere. You will find a concensus of its effective as a facial fat reduction method. You will find disagreement, especially that of western surgeons (check realself) and asian surgeons on its effectiveness as a lift procedure. From my experience having done the acculift, the supposed lifting effect or the "shrinking of soft tissue" is merely superficial due to swelling and heat from the laser. Individuals looking for a true lift should look at other procedures.

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Thank you for your long thread and your knowledge! wow! Are you work in medical field?? it would definitely help my surgery journey!

 

[archonei]

Hello @K Couture
I'm so grateful that there is someone like you who would make time to create such a helpful guide!
Bookmarked.

 

[mlydzz]

Does anyone know if you yawn a lot like opening ur mouth bigger than u should or kinda ( like forcing it cuz when you yawn youre forcing your muscles too )1-2+ months after vline it starts getting inflamed at the very beginning of the upper jaw? lol because mine is a bit swollen and idk if its because of that

 

[calliecat]

mlydzz said: ↑

Does anyone know if you yawn a lot like opening ur mouth bigger than u should or kinda ( like forcing it cuz when you yawn youre forcing your muscles too )1-2+ months after vline it starts getting inflamed at the very beginning of the upper jaw? lol because mine is a bit swollen and idk if its because of that

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I noticed when I yawned right after v-line my jaw felt pretty tight so I couldn't really yawn fully it was more like a half yawn (if that makes any sense) but my jaw never got inflamed just felt kind of tight and was gone completely 2 months post op. (I'm now 4 months going on 5 post op)

 

[mlydzz]

CallieCat said: ↑

I noticed when I yawned right after v-line my jaw felt pretty tight so I couldn't really yawn fully it was more like a half yawn (if that makes any sense) but my jaw never got inflamed just felt kind of tight and was gone completely 2 months post op. (I'm now 4 months going on 5 post op)

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yeah well im only 2 months post op and it doesnt swell that badly it's not noticeable. only when i place my fingers on it it hurts like a little maybe it's not serious.
i forgot but do u have screws on ur chin? when does it stop feeling sensitive? like when you touch it you can feel that it still needs time for the bone to reattach lol

 

[calliecat]

mlydzz said: ↑

yeah well im only 2 months post op and it doesnt swell that badly it's not noticeable. only when i place my fingers on it it hurts like a little maybe it's not serious.
i forgot but do u have screws on ur chin? when does it stop feeling sensitive? like when you touch it you can feel that it still needs time for the bone to reattach lol

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Hmmm at first I could feel the implant slightly but I stopped touching my chin after a while. I would say around the 2nd month was when most things settled completely for me. My swelling was pretty much all gone by like week 3. By the end of the 1st month I didn't feel any cracking or tightness around my mouth and my chin just felt like my chin. I still had a slight numbness around my chin about 1-2 months in but now that I'm nearly 5 months all that is pretty much gone. But yeah, the sensitivity definitely goes away around the 2nd month.

 

[mlydzz]

CallieCat said: ↑

Hmmm at first I could feel the implant slightly but I stopped touching my chin after a while. I would say around the 2nd month was when most things settled completely for me. My swelling was pretty much all gone by like week 3. By the end of the 1st month I didn't feel any cracking or tightness around my mouth and my chin just felt like my chin. I still had a slight numbness around my chin about 1-2 months in but now that I'm nearly 5 months all that is pretty much gone. But yeah, the sensitivity definitely goes away around the 2nd month.

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Oh maybe because Im not eating properly or the things needed to heal quickly. I suppose you did take care of yourself more than im doing lol thank you for the answer.

 

[violetink]

Hi everyone, I am a new member here. I am planning to go to Seoul for facial bone contouring surgery and primary rhino and I am currently researching for procedures, surgeons, etc. If anyone here plans to have a similar procedure and wants to enquire about my research result so far, feel free to message me

 

[violetink]

K Couture said: ↑

Section 5: Consultation and Selecting your surgeon

One of the hardest parts for those with no surgical experience is selecting the right surgeon. So how is this done? I believe this is an efficient method of going about it.

a) Understand your conditions and your needs. In my situation, my priority was a reconstructive rhinoplasty. I had previously done open rhinoplasty and my collumela had thus been shortened. I therefore chose to undergo closed rhinoplasty when it was propose to me as this would negate further shortening of the collumela. Only by knowing the options available for the procedure you are seeking and understanding the limitations of your condition are you able to make an informed decision.

b) Be social. Speak to the staff at the clinic and monitor their level of professionalism. Speak to post op patients especially. When I was at Dream I made it a point to chit chat with the post op patients. This affirms a real patient experience for after care and surgical skill. It was comforting that I met a grandmother in her sixities who just had a face lift, who looked like she was in her mid thirties. However, this shows the skill of the surgeon who performed the facelift, who was not my operating surgeon. So say you are looking to get a rhinoplasty, then you would be lucky to speak to a post op patient you meet at the clinic who has surgery with the rhino specialist.

c) Ask trick questions to the surgeons to test their honesty. For example, when I was proposed goretex as an implant for my revision at OZ clinic, I deliberately asked the surgeon about the difficulty in removing goretex. He stated that it was not difficult at all and I would not have to worry about thinning of tissue. This is know to be untrue as it is a widely known fact within the medical community especially, that goretex requires excision of tissue which thus does in fact cause a degree of thinning.

d) Do not show your surgeon pictures of celebrities. This one of the most eye rolling things you can do. Because plastic surgery is about improvements and enhancements ACCORDING TO YOUR PREEXISTING STRUCTURE. You cannot show an image of someone else and say "I want this nose" or "I want these cheekbones". It doesn't work like that and only displays how unrealistic you are. The most objective way to explain to a surgeon what results you want, is to photoshop your own features in a REALISTIC MANNER. This will give the surgeon a clear idea of what you want to achieve. This is especially important as if you are not specific, a surgeon's sense of beauty and what your ideal is may conflict.

e) Do not go on a tight budget. If you have too tight a budget you should save up so you are flexible with your finances. I've seen too many people picking a clinic because it is cheap and end up with unsatisfactory results requiring revision. The wellness of your surgical outcome must always outweigh your budget. Always! I do not mean paying more is always better. Its about making a calculated and informed decision based on surgeon's reputation, procedures required and difficulty of procedure.

f) *Very Important point here: IDENTIFY A GIMMICK PROCEDURE
Many clinics in seoul utilize marketing to charge a premium on certain procedures. Just like how it is important to know the difference between a surgeon's skill and his marketing team's capabilites, it is just as important to know when a procedure is complete and utter BS. Some clinics will claim to pioneer certain procedures such as the Power V lift. In this case, the "V" tag is added on to a generic form of facial lipo sculpture to attract people lacking in research and surgical knowledge. The procedure is then presented to the patient in a remarkable technical manner which leads the individual to believe its a medical innovation. A much for realistic and more affordable option would be the acculift as you are not paying a premium for rubbish. Same goes for the nose method that allows you to do a piggy nose. You are literally paying a premium of LV level prices in order for you to push your nose upwards to look like a pig. Think about that for a second before you get in awe by this method lol..... Another gimmick I will identify is the LAMs treatment at 365mc. The gimmick here is that you can see the fat removed as they do it, whole 100cc of it, which is nothing. They also charge through the roof for it. After the 100cc of nothing is removed, a fat dissolving liquid is then injected. Now for the truth. This procedure is lipodissolve rebranded as a lipo technique. Lipodissolve is a dangerous liquid which dissolves fats. Problem is it does not differentiate between fat, skin and flesh. Hence the reason why many clinics and some countries have banned the use of this liquid is because it can cause internal and external burning. The swelling period is also very broad and unpredictable. Can range from 5 days to 6 months depending on how the patient's body reacts. This is what the reputable Dr Martin Braun told me when I inquired about lipodissolve. That's not to say all clinics who employ these marketing tactics are bad. 365mc is by no means made up of an incompetant medical team. What I am suggesting is however, that one needs to differentiate between what's a medically efficient procedure and what is merely a gimmick aimed at charging patients a premium.

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Hi Kcouture,

Thank you so much for this very informative thread. I am currently researching procedures and surgeons in Seoul (because I am Asian and thus Korean doctors are better for me than western ones) and I must say, your posts have helped educate me the most among all other info out there.

I remember that you have mentioned before in another thread that we should not discuss surgical methodologies or options with the consultants as they do not have adequate surgical knowledge. However, my understanding is we should tell them what procedures we want and appear knowledgable about those procedures, so they will not overcharge us regarding the price? Please correct me if I am mistaken.

in your opinion, do you think we should make sure that we repeat stating all the procedures we want to the surgeon, in case the consultant doesn't tell the surgeon our requests completely?

I am also wondering if we can judge a surgeon/clinic by their website? I am considering Braun clinic seriously or facial bone contouring, however, on its website they mentioned that their surgical methods will cause no sagging for zygoma reduction. I know this is impossible and hence, I have doubts about Braun's honesty. But it may be that the surgeons did not contribute to the website at all, but the bad information is due to the web designer / marketing division's lack of knowledge? I would love to hear your opinions about this.

If you know any info about Braun surgeons' reputation (for facial contouring or rhinoplasty), clinic price range, acquaintances' experience etc, could you please share them? I would really appreciate it.

Thank you

 

[k-couture]

never judge by the website. Korean clinics use a crap ton of marketing to try to differentiate themselves. You might notice there are names of procedures which you have never heard of or some innovative new technique. This is often 90% of the time a marketing gimmick used to rebrand a standard procedure to make it sound more unique and exclusive. The problem here isnt only that you will be charged a premium price for a procedure that is worth a different market value, but also that you may be doing the wrong procedure for the results you desire.

Definitely treat your consult with the consultant versus the surgeon as seperate. The consultant is obviously entitled to their opinion but the surgeon's is the one that matters the most. You will find also that at times a consultant may recommend one thing but the surgeon recommends another. Basically the consultant's job is to, based on your facial anatomy, recommend the procedures based on what she thinks the surgeon will recommend, but that is not always in line with the actual diagnosis of the surgeon.

Braun Iost their best rhino surgeons a while back. I do not know who the replacement surgeons are anymore. As for facial contouring I think if you want dramatic results you can consider them. But do remember that dramatic results also means higher sagging rate and premature aging rate because the tissue loses its support from the bone. But if you are ok with getting a lift at an earlier stage then its not really a problem.