Dark circles under the eyes

Dark cir­cles are dark or shadowy dis­co­lou­ra­ti­ons of the skin beneath the eyes. They are usual­ly harm­less, but are often read as a sign of tired­ness and can make the face look older.

Cau­ses

Seve­ral fac­tors often com­bi­ne: thin, trans­lu­cent skin through which blood ves­sels show a bluish tin­ge, increased pig­men­ta­ti­on, par­ti­cu­lar­ly in dar­ker skin types, and loss of volu­me that casts a shadow in the tear trough. Gene­tics, skin age­ing, lack of sleep, all­er­gies and fre­quent eye rub­bing can make them worse.

Sym­ptoms

Depen­ding on the cau­se, dark cir­cles appear brow­nish, bluish-pur­ple or as a shadow that beco­mes more obvious under over­head light. They may occur tog­e­ther with puf­fi­ness or under-eye bags.

Tre­at­ment

Tre­at­ment depends on the cau­se. For pig­men­ta­ti­on, brigh­tening agents, peels or lasers may be con­side­red. A loss of volu­me can be cor­rec­ted with careful­ly pla­ced hyalu­ro­nic acid, and skin boos­ters can impro­ve the qua­li­ty of thin skin. Pro­no­un­ced fat bul­ges, on the other hand, usual­ly call for a lower eyelid lift. Sun pro­tec­tion and suf­fi­ci­ent sleep sup­port any treatment.

Matching tre­at­ment at Swiss Der­ma Cli­nic: Eye rings removal