Dark circles under the eyes may have many different causes. Obvious ones include lack of sleep over a prolonged period of time; different skin colouration and pigmentation and sometimes an underlying illness. These tend to be relatively obvious and patients will often complain that they don't want to end up looking like their mother or father with their genetically dark under-eyes.
There can be other treatable causes though and I'm going to work through some of these below and the possible causes and treatments.
Loss of elasticity of the skin under the eyes may result in the appearance of dark areas or dark bags. The skin loses its elasticity because of age, sun exposure over time and also very often due to smoking. Sometimes a genetic predisposition will contribute. The loose skin will then sit across the underlying muscles responsible for blinking and closing the eyes. These muscles tend to be dark in colour and without the normal thin layer of reflective fat under the skin and over the muscles there is an optical illuison where the reflection of light off the dark underlying muscle appears as dark bags or circles.
The good news about this sort of condition is that once correctly identified by a specialist aesthetic practitioner a number of treatments can be applied to deal with the issue. Obviously, prior to treatment then sun protection using a good quality high factor sun protection cream is essential, together with good quality UVA/UVB protecting sunglasses. In addition, the patient should stop smoking. Smoking is proven to reduce the delivery of oxygen to the superficial layers of the skin by up to 20%.
The tissue under the eyes and the area referred to as the tear trough (which is roughly a line running from the corner of the eye downwards and across the mid part of the upper cheek) can be supplemented using very careful application of hyaluronic acid fillers such as Restylane or Restylane Vital. It is important that this is done by an expert in non-surgical techniques. As you might imagine, surgeons themselves are often not the best at this sort of technique because operative work is their forte. However, very many surgeons are now using Restylane as a pre-operative skin conditioner prior to surgery as there is good evidence that application of hyaluronic acid some four to six weeks prior to operation has an excellent hydrating effect, enhancing the operative result.
Use of hyaluronic acids in this area will hydrate the skin and plump the skin, moisturising from within and also lift the skin off the underlying orbicularis oculi muscle (the muscle responsible for blinking and contracting the lower lid in this area). The overall effect is to enhance the natural radiant effect of the eye itself, distract attention from the dark circles, condition the skin and reduce or abolish the ageing tear-trough. The technique is simple but is extremely operator-dependent in terms of good aesthetic results. Expert injectors will achieve excellent results which tend to be long lasting.
Restylane and the other members of the Restylane family have an excellent safety record and to date over 10 million doses have been given worldwide.
Hyperpigmentation is another cause of dark circles under the eyes and may occur alone or in combination with loss of skin elasticity. In hyperpigmentation there is a build up of excess melanin in the melanin producing cells (melanocytes) under the eyes. The particular anatomical position of the excess melanin cells and the loss of fat underneath the skin will accentuate a dark, sad, tired and sometimes hung-over look.
Treatment for hyperpigmentation will involve the use of hydroquinone creams to the affected areas to reduce the amount of melanin producting cells and also the combination use of a topical vitamin A product, tretinoin to reduce the amount of melanin produced by the remaining melanocytes.
Again, as with the use of injectable hyaluronic acids into the area immediately benetah the eye and the tear trough, the administration of the hydroquinone and also the tretinoin is best advised by an expert to achieve best results with minimal side effects. Using the two products together then results should become apparent after about 6 weeks or so with peak or maximal effect at 26 weeks after commencement.
As with all treatments in this area, skilled combination treatments by an expert practitioner using both the application of creams and the use of injectable hyaluronic acids like Restylane or Restylane Vital will achieve excellent, natural looking results with minimal downtime.
Combinations of hyperpigmentation and age or sun related loss of skin elasticity are again best treated with combination treatments. The addition of profractional lasers like the Sciton laser in use at Freedomhealth allows for highly accurate targeted destruction of miniscule columns of skin with precise thermal damage to a predetermined depth.
In between the laser targeted areas are multiple columns of normal unaffected skin allowing for easy skin healing and tightening. Great care is taken to protect the eyes themselves from both light and thermal damage. In the UK patients should only have laser treatments in facilities such as Freedomhealth which are Care Quality Commission registered and are specifically identified as laser and intense light treatment facilities. Ideally, again as at Freedomhealth these treatments must be carried out by a highly trained clinician and not a beauty therapist.
As a preliminary conditioning regime, tretinoin and / or hydroquinone may be used to reduce both the amount and activity of the mealanin producing cells in the target area. This may be accompanied a few weeks ahead of the profractional Sciton laser treatment by the injection of hydrating, moisturising and skin conditioning hyaluronic acid products. We know that these will facilitate a swifter more complete healing time.
Commercially available creams such as those available in supermarkets or department stores will create the appearance of soft smooth skin for a short period and are an inexpensive option for those unconvinced or unable to afford more effective, definitive treatments. Many of these products will contain make up which will help disguise the problem areas but will not relieve the underlying problem.
The most effective treatment for dark circles under the eyes is to seek expert advice from an experienced and diligent aesthetic practitioner. A practitioner with a range of skills and a range of different options to suit the needs of an individual client is ideal.
Patients should not be afraid to check the qualifications of the treating practitioner and to enquire how many of the procedures he or she has done in the last year or so. Some practitioners will openly admit that they are just starting out and that they will be supervised by an experienced clinician.
There can be other treatable causes though and I'm going to work through some of these below and the possible causes and treatments.
Loss of elasticity of the skin under the eyes may result in the appearance of dark areas or dark bags. The skin loses its elasticity because of age, sun exposure over time and also very often due to smoking. Sometimes a genetic predisposition will contribute. The loose skin will then sit across the underlying muscles responsible for blinking and closing the eyes. These muscles tend to be dark in colour and without the normal thin layer of reflective fat under the skin and over the muscles there is an optical illuison where the reflection of light off the dark underlying muscle appears as dark bags or circles.
The good news about this sort of condition is that once correctly identified by a specialist aesthetic practitioner a number of treatments can be applied to deal with the issue. Obviously, prior to treatment then sun protection using a good quality high factor sun protection cream is essential, together with good quality UVA/UVB protecting sunglasses. In addition, the patient should stop smoking. Smoking is proven to reduce the delivery of oxygen to the superficial layers of the skin by up to 20%.
The tissue under the eyes and the area referred to as the tear trough (which is roughly a line running from the corner of the eye downwards and across the mid part of the upper cheek) can be supplemented using very careful application of hyaluronic acid fillers such as Restylane or Restylane Vital. It is important that this is done by an expert in non-surgical techniques. As you might imagine, surgeons themselves are often not the best at this sort of technique because operative work is their forte. However, very many surgeons are now using Restylane as a pre-operative skin conditioner prior to surgery as there is good evidence that application of hyaluronic acid some four to six weeks prior to operation has an excellent hydrating effect, enhancing the operative result.
Use of hyaluronic acids in this area will hydrate the skin and plump the skin, moisturising from within and also lift the skin off the underlying orbicularis oculi muscle (the muscle responsible for blinking and contracting the lower lid in this area). The overall effect is to enhance the natural radiant effect of the eye itself, distract attention from the dark circles, condition the skin and reduce or abolish the ageing tear-trough. The technique is simple but is extremely operator-dependent in terms of good aesthetic results. Expert injectors will achieve excellent results which tend to be long lasting.
Restylane and the other members of the Restylane family have an excellent safety record and to date over 10 million doses have been given worldwide.
Hyperpigmentation is another cause of dark circles under the eyes and may occur alone or in combination with loss of skin elasticity. In hyperpigmentation there is a build up of excess melanin in the melanin producing cells (melanocytes) under the eyes. The particular anatomical position of the excess melanin cells and the loss of fat underneath the skin will accentuate a dark, sad, tired and sometimes hung-over look.
Treatment for hyperpigmentation will involve the use of hydroquinone creams to the affected areas to reduce the amount of melanin producting cells and also the combination use of a topical vitamin A product, tretinoin to reduce the amount of melanin produced by the remaining melanocytes.
Again, as with the use of injectable hyaluronic acids into the area immediately benetah the eye and the tear trough, the administration of the hydroquinone and also the tretinoin is best advised by an expert to achieve best results with minimal side effects. Using the two products together then results should become apparent after about 6 weeks or so with peak or maximal effect at 26 weeks after commencement.
As with all treatments in this area, skilled combination treatments by an expert practitioner using both the application of creams and the use of injectable hyaluronic acids like Restylane or Restylane Vital will achieve excellent, natural looking results with minimal downtime.
Combinations of hyperpigmentation and age or sun related loss of skin elasticity are again best treated with combination treatments. The addition of profractional lasers like the Sciton laser in use at Freedomhealth allows for highly accurate targeted destruction of miniscule columns of skin with precise thermal damage to a predetermined depth.
In between the laser targeted areas are multiple columns of normal unaffected skin allowing for easy skin healing and tightening. Great care is taken to protect the eyes themselves from both light and thermal damage. In the UK patients should only have laser treatments in facilities such as Freedomhealth which are Care Quality Commission registered and are specifically identified as laser and intense light treatment facilities. Ideally, again as at Freedomhealth these treatments must be carried out by a highly trained clinician and not a beauty therapist.
As a preliminary conditioning regime, tretinoin and / or hydroquinone may be used to reduce both the amount and activity of the mealanin producing cells in the target area. This may be accompanied a few weeks ahead of the profractional Sciton laser treatment by the injection of hydrating, moisturising and skin conditioning hyaluronic acid products. We know that these will facilitate a swifter more complete healing time.
Commercially available creams such as those available in supermarkets or department stores will create the appearance of soft smooth skin for a short period and are an inexpensive option for those unconvinced or unable to afford more effective, definitive treatments. Many of these products will contain make up which will help disguise the problem areas but will not relieve the underlying problem.
The most effective treatment for dark circles under the eyes is to seek expert advice from an experienced and diligent aesthetic practitioner. A practitioner with a range of skills and a range of different options to suit the needs of an individual client is ideal.
Patients should not be afraid to check the qualifications of the treating practitioner and to enquire how many of the procedures he or she has done in the last year or so. Some practitioners will openly admit that they are just starting out and that they will be supervised by an experienced clinician.