Hongdae Skin Clinic Comfort by Treatment

Prices below come from the listed clinics' own price lists, before VAT. 10% VAT is added at payment.

Sensation follows the energy and the depth. Light that stays near the surface stings briefly, needles create pressure, and heat delivered deeper produces an ache rather than a sting. That difference decides whether a clinic applies cream, uses cooling, or simply starts.

Numbing cream is often assumed to allow a stronger and therefore more effective session. A randomized trial by Kushikata and colleagues, published in Dermatologic Surgery in 2006, tested that idea in women having radiofrequency skin tightening, with and without topical anesthesia. The cream lowered the pain people reported, but it did not let the operators raise energy by much, and results at three months were similar between the groups.

The practical reading is that numbing is about comfort, not about the outcome. With RF in particular, the heat you feel is part of how the operator judges each pulse, so a cream that removes every sensation is not the goal. Reporting a pulse that feels sharp or too hot remains your job.

Cream needs time on the skin before it works, so the appointment slot is longer than the treatment itself. Arrive early enough to fill in forms first, and avoid booking a timed dinner straight after a device session, since redness and warmth can linger for a few hours.

Skip alcohol before the visit and tell the clinic about any earlier reaction to local anesthetics. If your face is sensitive, ask whether the clinic can stage a long session in shorter passes or add cooling between them.

• Ask how long the cream stays on for your treatment.
• Wear nothing on the skin that needs removing in a hurry.
• Plan a quiet hour afterward if heat or swelling is expected.

Studies of complications after treatment abroad mostly concern surgery. In a review of patients who needed surgery at a London teaching hospital after cosmetic operations overseas, Thacoor and colleagues reported in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal in 2018 on 24 patients seen between 2006 and 2018; infection was the primary complication in 92% of them and the mean hospital stay was 8 days.

Device and injection sessions are of a different scale, yet needles and heat still carry small risks of infection, burns and lumps. Keep the clinic's contact for the days after treatment, and return if pain, blistering or swelling gets worse rather than better.

Many visitors stay quiet because they are unsure what is normal. A simple scale works across languages: hold up fingers from one to ten, or agree on a hand signal before the first pulse.

• Say when a pulse feels sharp rather than warm.
• Mention numbness, tingling or a burning point that stays.
• Ask for a pause if you need one; a session can resume.
• Report dizziness or nausea at once.