What is the difference between “eye bags” and eye festoons?
Festoons—also called malar mounds are not well understood by most people. Many who actually have festoons are unaware of the condition or what is causing it. Bags are caused by fat or fluid protruding through the skin in the lower eyelid area, while festoons, which also protrude, are primarily on the upper part of the cheek. The two together can look like one large protrusion, but they’re separate issues.
Bags often appear as puffy circles directly beneath the eye. If you touch them, they’re usually firmer, and you can’t easily move them from side to side. That’s an indication they’re bags. Also, if you look up, they become more prominent. Bags are generally associated with aging, allergies and fatigue.
Festoons, on the other hand, are high on the cheek, although they can extend to the lower lid area. They feel squishy to the touch, and they can be easily moved from side to side. They don’t become more prominent when you look up.
Festoons are usually the result of damage. Sun exposure, smoking, poor diet, drinking coffee and alcohol and aging are among the possible causes. In addition they can be due to circulatory issues and high blood pressure. The results can be worsened by the contrasting pull of underlying facial muscles over the years. Fair-skinned people tend to be more susceptible to festoons. Although those with darker skin tones are not immune.
Although festoons can be an indication of some serious medical conditions it is more likely that they are a result of lifestyle and diet. For example, festoons may expand if someone has a sensitivity to caffeinated drinks. Eye Strain caused by too much computer time or television can also increase their size. Festoons will become a pinkish color and will diminish or expand.
Treatments for festoon and eye bags:
What concerns many is how persistent festoon bags are and if they can be treated. Once they start to appear they tend to become a permanent facial feature which shrinks or expands depending on the body’s reaction to certain triggers. Skin care products can help improve fine lines, wrinkles and the look of “bags”.
For those who are not willing to undergo surgery to improve the appearance, there are some conservative options including the following.
- Acupuncture
- Herbal remedies and Vitamin K
- Neotensil (Spandex for the eye)
- Dermal Fillers
- Lipodissolve
In Chinese medicine, dysfunction of internal organs present themselves on the face; and problems around the eyes are believed to be connected to some underlying imbalance, usually involving the kidneys, adrenal glands, and the liver. Well-trained acupuncturists will take a full health history to pinpoint the culprit and then treat the acupuncture points associated with the imbalance, and in doing so will improve the appearance of bags and dark circles. Holistic acupuncturists may also prescribe herbal medicine or micronutrients, such as Licorice, Angelica, Milk Thistle, or Vitamin K, which will improve the functioning of those organs, bring nutrients to the affected area, and result in improved facial representation of organ function.
Neotensil™ is a new product that can be used on the skin to offer temporary improvement in the appearance of “eye bags”. It involves the application of two layers of product that works to reshape the skin and acts much like Spandex does for abdominal fat. Step 1 involves the placement of a reshaping base layer. Step 2 involves the application of an activating layer that cross links with the base layer; resulting in shaping the skin under the eye, and the improvement seen can last up to 16 hours.
Dermal Fillers can improve the appearance by “filling in” the space below the fat pad thereby blending the fat pad to the cheek curve. Depending on the filler used this can last for at least one year.
Lipodissolve is injection of a solution into the fat pad that essentially dissolves the fat pad. This should be done with extreme caution and can be associated with significant erythema (redness) and edema (swelling) for up to 10 days and may need to be repeated.
Regardless, if the condition is really a Festoon, and not a bag, all of the above treatments may either not improve the bag, or actually make the appearance worse.
All depends on individual skin condition…