Brow heaviness from lax forehead tissue, rather than lid skin, is where Ultherapy Prime is weighed, with the lines kept outside the orbital rim.
This page covers the eye area only. For Thermage FLX on the face and neck, and how it compares with other lifting, see Thermage FLX in Singapore.
Thermage FLX has a dedicated small eye tip that delivers monopolar radiofrequency to the thin skin of the upper and lower eyelids, with protective eye shields inserted under the lids after anaesthetic eye drops. It is used for crepey eyelid skin and mild hooding from skin laxity. It does not remove fat bags, correct heavy hooding from brow descent, or replace eyelid surgery when there is a lot of excess skin.
Abstract illustration. Hooding can come from the skin, the brow or both.
Key facts
Tip
A small eye tip designed for eyelid skin
Protection
Protective eye shields inserted under the lids after anaesthetic eye drops
Often considered for
Crepey eyelid skin, mild hooding from skin laxity
Not for
Fat bags, heavy hooding from brow descent, marked excess skin
Eye Thermage, or Thermage for the eyes, uses a dedicated small eye tip of Thermage FLX to heat the thin skin of the upper and lower lids with monopolar radiofrequency, with protective shields placed under the lids first. It suits crepey lid skin and mild hooding from skin laxity. It does not remove fat bags, raise a low brow or replace eyelid surgery.
Comparing lifting options beyond Thermage? For most sagging, Dr Sin Yong leads with his own protocols, the VF Lift – Vertical Facelift (monopolar radiofrequency on Volnewmer) and Time Freeze Laser LCLR® (dual-wavelength laser). Both work on your own tissue. Nothing is injected, so there is no filler to overfill, migrate or form lumps. Which one suits you, if either, is decided at assessment.
What eye Thermage does
Radiofrequency heats the dermis as a layer while cryogen cools the surface. On the eyelids, the thin skin is treated with a smaller tip and lower energy, and protective eye shields are inserted under the lids after anaesthetic eye drops, so the eye itself is not exposed. The aim is collagen contraction and gradual remodelling of the eyelid skin over the following months.
Illustrative image — not a patient.
Who it suits, and who it does not
Eyelid Thermage is considered when the skin itself is crepey or loose and the brow position is reasonable. If hooding is mainly from a descended brow, the brow is the problem, and options differ; see droopy and hooded eyelids. If the lower lid has fat bags, heat on the skin will not change them; see eye bags. Marked excess skin is a surgical question.
Thermage around the eyes zone by zone: which tip, what is assessed, and what it cannot change
Thermage for the eyes is not one pass over the orbit. The lids take the small eye tip at low energy with shields; the skin beyond the orbital rim takes the face tip; some findings are not a radiofrequency question at all. The table sets each zone against tip, assessment and limit.
If the heaviness is coming from the brow, heating the eyelid is treating the wrong thing. The assessment decides which one you have before any tip is chosen.— Dr Sin Yong
Eye zone
Tip and protection
What is assessed first
What it cannot change
Upper eyelid
Eye tip, lower energy; shields inserted after anaesthetic eye drops
Skin versus brow as the source of hooding; the lifting muscle; excess skin
Hooding from brow descent; a drooping lid from a weak muscle; marked excess skin, which is surgical
Lower eyelid
Eye tip with shields, conservative energy on the thinnest skin of the face
Crepey skin versus a fat bag behind the septum versus a hollow; pigment
A fat bag, a tear trough hollow, pigment; see eye bag causes
Crow's feet and skin around the eye
Eye tip, cleared for the skin around the eyes as well as the lids
Lines at rest versus lines on smiling, and whether skin laxity is the issue
Lines made by muscle movement, which are a different treatment category
What is in the tissue and where, with ultrasound where filler is suspected
Heat does not remove or reshape filler
What the platform is and which tips exist is on Thermage FLX.
Illustrative image — not a patient.
Thermage eyes or another route? A verdict by eyelid problem
Thermage eyes is one answer to one eyelid problem: skin on the lids that has become thin, crepey or slightly loose while the brow sits in a reasonable position. Most people who ask about it have a heavy or tired-looking eye, and that look has several causes that sit in different layers. Naming the cause first is what decides whether the eye tip is the right tool, and Dr Sin Yong examines the brow, the lid skin, the lid muscle and the lower lid separately before any treatment is proposed.
What the examination finds
Usually leans to
Why
Crepey upper or lower lid skin, brow position fine
Thermage FLX eye tip
Broad heating of thin lid skin with shields in place; collagen remodels gradually
Lid skin that has lost its snap, with texture or fine lines
VF Lift – Vertical Facelift to the brow and upper face, or focused ultrasound to the brow
Heating the lid does not raise a brow; the brow is the problem
A fat bag in the lower lid
Eye bag assessment
Heat on the skin does not change fat behind the septum; see eye bag removal
A hollow tear trough
Volume, not heat
A hollow is lost support, which radiofrequency does not replace
Lines at the outer eye that appear on smiling
Muscle-relaxing injections
Movement lines are a muscle problem; see crow's feet
The lid edge itself sits low (true ptosis)
Referral for surgery
A weak lid-lifting muscle is not a skin problem
Marked excess lid skin
Surgical opinion
Beyond what any energy device can tighten
Many eyes have two of these at once, most often a lowered brow with lax lid skin after 45, and then the plan is staged rather than forced into one device. Where filler or threads have been placed near the eye, they are located first, with ultrasound where filler is suspected, because heat does not remove or reshape filler. Aftercare, swelling and when to call are set out further down this page and on Thermage aftercare.
Comfort, swelling and aftercare
At the clinic on Orchard Road, Singapore, the shields and the procedure are explained before starting; numbing cream may be used on the lids. Swelling for a day or two is common, especially on the lower lids, and is eased by cool compresses and sleeping slightly raised. Make-up is usually avoided for a day. Uncommon risks include small burns or blisters, which is why energy is kept conservative on thin skin. The general guidance is on Thermage aftercare and Thermage side effects.
Questions after treatment come back through WhatsApp at +65 8023 7170 during clinic hours (Monday to Friday 10am to 8pm, Saturday 11am to 3pm, Singapore time). Anything that is getting worse rather than better, a blister or open area, or fever needs to be seen the same day, wherever you are.
Eye Thermage is felt as brief pulses of heat on the lids. Anaesthetic eye drops are used before the protective shields are inserted under the lids, and numbing cream may be applied to the eyelid skin. Energy is kept conservative on this thin skin, which also lowers the risk of small burns or blisters. Swelling for a day or two afterwards is common, especially on the lower lids, and settles with cool compresses.
It can help hooding that comes from lax lid skin with the brow in a reasonable position, because the eye tip heats the lid skin and collagen remodels gradually. It does not help hooding caused by a descended brow, which needs the brow addressed, or a drooping lid edge from a weak muscle, which is referred for surgery. The source of the hooding is examined before any treatment is suggested.
There is no fixed number. Thermage works through collagen remodelling, which develops gradually after treatment, so the result is reviewed once that change has had time to show rather than judged on the day. Whether a further treatment is worthwhile depends on the lid skin, the brow, age and how the skin responded. It is decided at review, not sold as a package in advance.
They do different jobs. Thermage FLX has a dedicated eye tip that treats the upper and lower lids themselves, with shields protecting the eye. Ultherapy can use a superficial transducer for crepey skin around the eyes, kept within the bony orbital rim so the eye is never in the beam, and it is also used to lift the outer brow. Which suits depends on whether the problem is lid skin or brow position.
Eyelid Thermage is considered when the eyelid skin itself is crepey or mildly loose and the brow sits in a reasonable position. It is not for hooding that comes mainly from a descended brow, which needs a different approach, or for lower-lid fat bags, which heat on the skin does not change. Marked excess skin is a surgical question, and Dr Sin Yong refers rather than offering heat for it.
The eyelids are treated with a dedicated small tip designed for thin eyelid skin, and protective shields are inserted under the lids after anaesthetic eye drops, so the eye itself is not exposed to the energy. Swelling afterwards is common, especially on the lower lids, and is eased with cool compresses. Uncommon risks include small burns or blisters, which is why energy is kept conservative on such thin skin.
Yes. Thermage FLX has a dedicated eye tip for upper and lower eyelid skin, with protective eye shields inserted under the lids after anaesthetic eye drops.
No. Fat bags are not changed by heating the skin; they are assessed separately.
Usually a day or two, eased by cool compresses.
For mild skin laxity it may be considered; for marked excess skin, surgery is the more realistic option.
Thermage FLX has an eye tip for the upper and lower eyelid skin, used with protective eye shields, to tighten mildly crepey eyelid skin. Heavy hooding from brow descent or excess skin usually needs a different approach, so the lids and brow are assessed together first.
Fitzpatrick R, Geronemus R, Goldberg D, Kaminer M, Kilmer S, Ruiz-Esparza J. Multicenter study of noninvasive radiofrequency for periorbital tissue tightening. Lasers in Surgery and Medicine, 2003. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Monopolar radiofrequency treatment of human eyelids: a prospective, multicenter, efficacy trial. Lasers in Surgery and Medicine. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Tightening of the eyelids with monopolar radiofrequency in Asians. PubMed. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
de Felipe I, Del Cueto SR, Pérez E, Redondo P. Adverse reactions after nonablative radiofrequency: follow-up of 290 patients. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2007. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
