Surgery · Facial Contour

Best Buccal Fat Removal in Korea: Choosing a Clinic

Best buccal fat removal in Seoul, weighed on the diagnosis, the amount taken and the aftercare

Gangnam, Seoul | Board-certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Jonghwan Choi
KHIDI-registered for international patients · Apgujeong Rewind

Choosing a Buccal Fat Surgeon Choosing a Buccal Fat Surgeon Choosing a Buccal Fat Surgeon Choosing a Buccal Fat Surgeon 
Cheek

Choosing buccal fat removal

How do you choose a clinic for buccal fat removal in Korea?

The short answer

Choose the clinic where the surgeon first tells you whether the buccal pad is really what makes your cheek look full, then explains how much of it would come out and why. Ask who operates, how the amount is limited for the way your face will age, and for a written quote that shows whether the pad is removed alone or inside a larger contour plan.

The pad cannot be put back once it has been taken. That single fact makes the examination and the restraint of the surgeon matter more than the speed or the price of the operation.

Facts about Rewind on this page come from the clinic's deep-cheek fat page, its price sheet and its registration details.

Buccal fat removal is a short operation done from inside the mouth, and it is widely advertised in Gangnam as a quick way to a slimmer lower face. A full cheek, though, can come from several layers, and only one of them is the buccal pad. Comparing clinics starts with how each one tells those layers apart.

Lower-face and cheek assessment during a consultation at Rewind Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong
Fig. 01 — Which layer makes the cheek full is decided by examining it
Result

Before & After

Buccal fat cases to look at, with every procedure named

A slimmer lower face in a photo is often the result of several procedures done together. When you compare cases, read the caption first. The first pair below is the pad removed and nothing else; the other two combine it with liposuction and neck-muscle tightening in one session.

Rewind patients — deep cheek fat

Lower face before buccal fat removal with no other procedure, Rewind patient Lower face after buccal fat removal with no other procedure, Rewind patient BEFOREAFTER
case 01
Buccal fat removal on its own, no other procedure that day
Individual results may vary.
Before buccal fat removal done together with double-chin liposuction and platysma tightening After buccal fat removal done together with double-chin liposuction and platysma tightening BEFOREAFTER
case 02
Buccal fat removal + double-chin liposuction + platysma tightening
Individual results may vary.
Side view before buccal fat removal combined with face, cheek and double-chin liposuction and platysma tightening Side view after buccal fat removal combined with face, cheek and double-chin liposuction and platysma tightening BEFOREAFTER
case 03
Face, cheek and double-chin liposuction + platysma tightening + buccal fat removal
Individual results may vary.

All three pairs are Rewind patients, photographed by the clinic unretouched and published with written consent. Cases two and three show the effect of several procedures at once, so they cannot be read as the result of the pad alone. Swelling, bruising, altered sensation, asymmetry between the cheeks and a hollow look in later years are among the possible outcomes.

Check

Before you book

Best buccal fat removal in Seoul: five questions to settle first

Each of these can be asked by message, with photos, before you commit to travel. Written answers let you set one clinic's reply beside another's on equal terms.

check 01
Is the pad really the cause?
Fat under the skin, a strong chewing muscle, a wide jaw and tissue that has dropped with age all make a cheek look heavy. Ask the surgeon which of these is present in your face and how much of the fullness the buccal pad accounts for.
check 02
How much will be taken
Ask whether the whole pad or only part of it is planned, and how the amount is judged. A surgeon who mentions how your midface may thin with age is answering the question that matters most for this operation.
check 03
Who examines and who operates
Ask for the operating surgeon's name and which specialty certification that doctor holds, and whether the same doctor sees you after surgery.
check 04
Alone or combined
If liposuction or neck work is suggested as well, ask what each part changes by itself. Combined plans are common, and each item should be justified by your own examination.
check 05
Registration and the written quote
Ask for the clinic's KHIDI number for international patients and a quote listing every procedure, the price of each and how VAT is handled.
Types

Comparing providers

Four settings that offer buccal fat removal in Seoul

You will find this operation offered in quite different places. Each can be the right one for a given patient; what changes is the first thing you should ask.

01Specialist

A plastic surgery clinic focused on facial contour

The surgeon examines the cheek, jaw and neck together. Ask how that surgeon separates the buccal pad from fat under the skin, and when the advice would be to leave the pad alone.

02Cosmetic

A cosmetic practice offering surgery beside injections

Fat-dissolving injections and devices may be offered alongside the operation. Ask which layer each option reaches, since injections work under the skin and do not reach the pad inside its pocket.

03Centre

A large centre with several surgical teams

Consultation and surgery may be handled by different people. Ask who will judge the amount on the day, who operates, and whom you will see at the review.

04Agency

A booking made through an agency

An agency is not the medical provider. Ask it to name the clinic and the operating surgeon, and compare its price with the clinic's own listed price for the pad alone and in a combined plan.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi discussing a surgical plan with a patient at Rewind Plastic Surgery
Fig. 02 — The amount to remove is agreed at consultation, before a date is set
Rewind

The same checks, applied here

How Rewind answers the buccal fat checklist

Below are the clinic's published answers to the questions above, so you can check them against what you are told in person.

01Surgeon

Dr. Jonghwan Choi examines and operates

Dr. Choi, a board-certified plastic surgeon, feels the cheek himself to separate the deep pad from the layer under the skin and from muscle, performs the excision and attends your review.

02Method

A 1 cm opening and selective removal

Rewind's page describes three steps: an incision of about 1 cm inside the mouth, removal of only the unnecessary part of the pad, and closure with dissolving sutures. Nothing is cut on the outside of the face.

03Price

Two listed prices, alone or combined

The pad has one price when removed on its own and a lower one when it is added to a contour operation already booked. Both are shown below, and a combined plan is written out item by item.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi operating with loupes and a headlight at Rewind
Fig. 03 — The excision is carried out through the mouth, under magnification
Apgujeong

The clinic

Where buccal fat removal at Rewind takes place

Operating room at Rewind Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong

Fig. 04 — Contour operations take place in the clinic's own theatre

Recovery room at Rewind Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong

Fig. 05 — Patients rest here before leaving on the day

Rewind Plastic Surgery occupies the fourth and fifth floors of the Richro Building in Apgujeong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Examination, surgery and follow-up for buccal fat removal are all held there by appointment: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 10:00 to 19:00, and Saturday from 10:00 to 16:00.

Cheek layers assessed before any plan
Incision of about 1 cm inside the mouth
Only the surplus part of the pad removed
Dissolving sutures, no removal visit
Combined plans itemised in writing
Messages answered as soon as possible
Dr. Jonghwan Choi, board-certified plastic surgeon at Rewind

Board-certified plastic surgeon

Buccal fat removal at Rewind is performed by Dr. Jonghwan Choi, board-certified plastic surgeon. KHIDI registration for international patients: M-2025-01-08-09288.

Quote

Pricing

Buccal fat removal prices at Rewind

The listed price depends on whether the pad is the whole operation or part of a larger one. The procedures most often planned with it are listed too, so a combined quote can be checked line by line.

Buccal fat removal, on its ownThe deep cheek pad as a single operation
₩2,000,000
Buccal fat removal, combinedAdded to a contour operation already planned
₩1,500,000
Side-cheek liposuctionFat under the skin of the side cheek
₩940,000
Double-chin liposuctionThe area under the jaw
₩1,760,000

Prices are listed excluding VAT (10% VAT is added at payment). The written quote names each procedure in the plan and every additional line before a date is fixed.

Fit

Suitability

Who buccal fat removal tends to suit, and when to hold back

Often a good fit when

  • Your cheeks look round and full, especially low on the face
  • The lower cheek bulges and droops towards the jaw
  • The cheek looks as if it is holding food
  • The jaw line looks uneven because of the volume above it
  • The fullness has stayed even when your weight changed

Worth holding back when

  • Your midface is already slim or starting to look hollow
  • The heaviness comes from tissue that has dropped with age
  • A strong chewing muscle or wide jaw is the main cause
  • You expect a sharper jaw or chin outline from this alone
  • You have an oral infection, a bleeding tendency, or are pregnant or breastfeeding
Stay

Planning the stay

Buccal fat aftercare to plan around your trip

Because the wound is inside the mouth, most of the aftercare concerns eating and cleaning. Rewind's instructions give the outline; your own review dates are set by the surgeon.

Day of surgery
Brushing allowed
You may brush your teeth on the day of the operation, gently and away from the wound, and keep the mouth clean as instructed.
Until the next day
Soft food only
Food stays soft until the day after surgery, so plan simple meals for the first evening.
The following period
Protect the closure
Avoid opening the mouth wide, chewing hard food and puffing out the cheeks for a period, since each pulls on the stitched lining.
Stitches
No removal visit
The sutures dissolve by themselves. Review visits are about how the swelling and the wound inside the cheek are settling.

Risks to discuss include bleeding, infection, prolonged swelling, altered sensation, asymmetry between the two cheeks and, if too much is taken, a hollow look as the face ages. Results vary by individual.

Doctor

Professional

With buccal fat, the most important decision is how little to take. At Rewind the surgeon who makes that call is the one who operates.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi, board-certified plastic surgeonRewind,
Journal of Craniofacial Surgery article co-authored by Dr. Jonghwan Choi
Fig. 06 — Published craniofacial work can be looked up by anyone

Rewind's Doctor

Dr. Jonghwan Choi Medical Director

A cheek should look lighter now
and still full at fifty.

Board-certified plastic surgeon and medical director, author of ten peer-reviewed papers in craniofacial surgery and medical science journals.

Board-certified plastic surgeon (Plastic Surgery)
10 peer-reviewed publications
Medical Director, Rewind Plastic Surgery
Korean Society of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgeons
Former chief director, Apgujeong Y&T Plastic Surgery
Korean Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery
J Craniofac Surg · JKMS · Arch Craniofac Surg
Korean Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association
Ask

Questions

Choosing a buccal fat removal surgeon: common questions

How can a surgeon tell whether my buccal pad is the problem?
By examining the cheek by hand and watching it as you move. The deep pad sits in its own pocket between the chewing muscles, separate from fat under the skin, muscle bulk and bone. A photo alone cannot separate these, so treat any plan made only from pictures as provisional.
Is it safer to take out the whole pad or only part of it?
Rewind removes only the part judged surplus, selectively. Surgical papers on this operation warn that taking too much can leave the midface hollow as fat naturally thins with age, so a smaller, deliberate amount is the usual aim.
Will there be a scar on my face?
No cut is made on the outside of the face. The opening of about 1 cm is on the inner lining of the cheek and is closed with dissolving sutures, so there is no external mark and no stitch-removal appointment.
How long should I stay in Seoul after buccal fat removal?
Plan for at least one review visit, on a date the surgeon sets. You can brush your teeth on the day and return to normal food after the first day, though wide mouth opening, hard chewing and puffing the cheeks are avoided for a period afterwards.
Can buccal fat removal be combined with liposuction?
Yes. Rewind lists a separate, lower price for the pad when it is added to a contour operation such as cheek or double-chin liposuction. Two of the three cases on this page were combined in that way, which is why each caption lists every procedure.
Is buccal fat removal a good idea after forty?
Often less so. In an older face, fullness above the jaw is frequently tissue that has dropped, and removing fat can make that more visible. The surgeon may suggest a lifting operation or no surgery at all.
Can fat-dissolving injections do the same job?
They work on fat under the skin. The buccal pad lies deeper, in its own pocket, and is removed surgically from inside the mouth. Which of the two suits you depends on which layer the examination finds.
Can I send photos before I book?
Yes. Send front and side photos of your face through the form below or WhatsApp, and Rewind replies as soon as possible. Any view given from photos is preliminary; the plan is confirmed only after an in-person examination.
Voices

Google Reviews

What our patients say.

G 5.0 ★★★★★ 51 Google reviews · Rewind Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong — live-synced from Google Business Profile
★★★★★

Came to REWIND to get my facial treatment and i'm absolutely obsessed about it💞 the doctor is so kind and is an expert! Everyone must visit!

YunHee Hong2 weeks ago
★★★★★

There are just way too many cosmetic clinics in Korea and I'm so happy I found Rewind Clinic in Gangnam. Dr. Choi was so kind and patient while explaining the different face-lifting options, from threads to mini-lifts to deep-plane lifts…

J. S.5 months ago
★★★★★

I found Rewind clinic through a Korean chat forum and many local clients highly recommended it. The clinic is brand new, featuring large, clean rooms and many private waiting areas so it doesn't give off that "factory" clinic vibe. All the…

J. Siou5 months ago
★★★★★

Really nice environment. Doctor is easy to communicate and understands my visions. Waited two weeks to make a review and I confirm the results exceeded my expectations and I am super happy with it. Can't wait to come back!! :))

Kristie Chu5 months ago
★★★★★

I received a thread lift at Rewind Plastic Surgery. The clinic was clean and the atmosphere was comfortable. The consultation was thorough, and I felt confident because they kindly explained everything tailored to my facial condition. They…

한주연2 weeks ago · Translated by Google
Booking

Reservation

REWIND,booking

Send front and side photos of your face, mention any earlier cheek or jaw treatment, and we reply as soon as possible.

Visit

REWIND,visit

For international patients — interpreter-assisted, from your first message to your follow-up.

Location
Apgujeong, Gangnam
4F & 5F, Richro Building,
812 Nonhyeon-ro,
Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Hours
Mon·Tue·Wed·Fri 10:00–19:00
Sat 10:00–16:00
Closed Sundays & Thursdays
Lunch 12:00–13:00
Consultation
In your language
WhatsApp · Instagram
Interpreter-assisted
consultations available
Registration
KHIDI Registered
Registered institution for
international patients
Reg. M-2025-01-08-09288

Scientific evidence

Research behind the buccal fat clinic checklist

The first three papers discuss how much of the buccal pad to remove and in whom, including middle-aged patients; the fourth reports complications seen after cosmetic surgery abroad, the reason review dates and contact after you fly home belong in your questions. Their patients were not Rewind patients, and their findings describe groups rather than any one person.