Non-Surgical · Hyaluronidase · Existing Filler

Dissolving Existing Filler

Filler placed by a previous provider, in Korea or abroad, and what is needed to reverse it

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

Existing Filler Existing Filler Existing Filler Existing Filler Existing Filler Existing Filler
Origin

Existing filler

Can filler placed by a previous provider be dissolved in Seoul?

The short answer

Yes, when the filler is hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronidase breaks down hyaluronic acid gel whoever injected it, whenever that was and in whichever country, so the origin of the filler does not decide the answer. The material does. Before anything is injected, Rewind needs whatever helps establish what was placed, where it now sits and whether you have reacted to the enzyme before. If the product turns out not to be hyaluronic acid, the enzyme will have no effect and the plan changes.

Rewind lists filler dissolving as its own treatment, charged per area. How the area is numbed, how long the visit takes and how many passes may be needed are confirmed at the consultation.

Filler you already have often arrives with gaps in its story. The brand name may be lost, the injection may date back years, and several sessions may have added different products to the same area. None of that rules out dissolving. It does mean the first appointment is spent working out what is there before any enzyme is drawn up.

That appointment is practical in aim. It describes the tissue as it is today and what can be done about it. It does not grade the earlier treatment, and nobody will ask you to justify having had it. Filler can change its look over years for many reasons, the ageing of the face around it among them.

Consultation room at Rewind Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong, Seoul
Fig. 01 · The history of the existing filler is pieced together here before any plan is made
Records

What to bring

Four records that help before existing filler is dissolved

None of these is compulsory. Each one narrows what the doctor has to infer from touch and appearance alone, and a photograph of a label on your phone is as useful as the label itself.

record 01
Product details
The brand or product name, a sticker from the syringe box, or a treatment card, in whatever language it was written.
record 02
Dates and sessions
When the filler was placed, and whether the area was topped up later. Several sessions can mean several products in one place.
record 03
Area and amount
Which regions were treated and, if you were told, roughly how much was used. An approximate figure is still worth having.
record 04
Reactions and past enzyme
Swelling, lumps or infection after the original injection, and any earlier dissolving session, including how you reacted to it.

If the product cannot be identified at all, dissolving can still go ahead when the examination points clearly to hyaluronic acid. When it does not, no enzyme is used, and the appointment remains an assessment of what the material is likely to be.

Trace

Assessment

How filler of unknown brand is assessed before any enzyme

An enzyme that works on one material is only as useful as the identification behind it. These four steps come before the injection, and the last of them comes after it.

01History

Reconstructing the original filler treatment

Your records and recollection are laid out against a timeline: which areas, which years, and whether anything other than hyaluronic acid was ever mentioned. A product described to you as a collagen booster or a long-lasting filler is a cue to look harder at what the area holds.

02Examine

Reading existing filler by feel and position

Hyaluronic acid gel, collagen-stimulating products, scar tissue and fat each behave differently under the fingers and tend to sit in different layers. Dr. Jonghwan Choi carries out this examination personally and states which parts he reads as hyaluronic acid and which he does not.

03Screen

Your history with hyaluronidase comes first

The enzyme is itself a protein, and allergic reactions to it appear in published reviews of its aesthetic use. If you have received it before, the doctor needs to know how that went. A prior reaction, or a marked allergy history, affects whether a first dose is offered at all and how small it would be.

04Measured

A small first dose into identified gel, then review

Where hyaluronic acid is identified, the enzyme goes into that deposit in small amounts and the area is reviewed once it settles. A mixed area may clear only partly, and that partial response is itself informative about what remains.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi discussing existing filler with a patient at Rewind Plastic Surgery
Fig. 02 · Records and recollection are gone through before the area is examined
Rewind

Why here

Why existing filler is examined by a plastic surgeon first

Dissolving filler you already have is a diagnostic task before it is an injection. These three points are where that difference shows.

01Materials

More than one filler material may be present

Poly-L-lactic acid, polycaprolactone and calcium hydroxylapatite are injected into the same regions as hyaluronic acid and can sit beside it. A 2014 study of a polycaprolactone-based product described new collagen forming in the injected tissue, a response no enzyme reverses. Knowing which material is which keeps you from paying for a treatment that would change nothing.

02Neutral

The consultation looks at your tissue today

You are not asked to defend a past decision, and the earlier injector is not discussed. The questions are about the material, its position and your reaction history, because those are the only things that change what the enzyme can do.

03Layers

Knowing the layers under the gel

Dr. Choi is a board-certified plastic surgeon whose daily work takes place in the facial layers where filler sits. That familiarity helps separate gel from descent or fat, and it tells him when removing gel alone would leave a shape you would not want.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi, board-certified plastic surgeon and medical director of Rewind Plastic Surgery
Fig. 03 · The same doctor identifies the material and decides whether to treat it
Visit

On the day

Bringing existing filler to a Rewind consultation

Clinic floor in the Richro Building at Rewind Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong

Fig. 04 · The clinic floor in the Richro Building

Quiet room at Rewind Plastic Surgery, Gangnam, Seoul

Fig. 05 · A quiet room to sit in once the area has been treated

Consultations run on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday between 10:00 and 19:00 and on Saturday between 10:00 and 16:00; the clinic is shut on Thursdays and Sundays, and every visit is booked ahead. If you can, send your records ahead through the booking form, then bring the originals or photographs on the day. Before the enzyme is drawn up you may ask to read the label on its packaging.

Existing filler assessed before any dose
Records accepted in any language
Allergy history taken first
Charged per treated area
Nothing cut, nothing stitched
Examined and injected by Dr. Jonghwan Choi

For a short stay in Seoul, put the consultation near the start. Whether the first dose follows on the same day is decided at the examination, and an early appointment leaves room for the review before you fly. Filler placed abroad in a product never sold in Korea is assessed in exactly the same way: by what the examination and your records show.

Rates

Pricing

What dissolving existing filler costs at Rewind

Existing filler is dissolved at the same per-area rate as any hyaluronic acid. The rate list carries no surcharge line for filler of unknown brand, filler placed abroad or filler placed by a previous provider in Korea.

Hyaluronidase, per treated areaApplies to hyaluronic acid identified at the examination
₩80,000

VAT is added to the listed rate, and the numbing used during the injection is included. How many areas are treated, and how any further pass would be charged, is agreed in writing ahead of the first dose. Material that is not hyaluronic acid is not dissolved and carries no enzyme charge.

Fit

Suitability

When existing filler can be dissolved, and when the plan changes

Usually suitable for dissolving

  • Filler you already have that was described to you as hyaluronic acid, with or without a brand name
  • Gel placed abroad, where product details were given in another language or never given at all
  • An area that has become wider, puffier or more visible than it looked when first placed
  • A patient willing to wait for a review before deciding on anything new

Where the plan changes

  • A product identified as poly-L-lactic acid, polycaprolactone, calcium hydroxylapatite or a non-absorbable material
  • A firm lump the examination cannot attribute to hyaluronic acid
  • A previous allergic reaction to hyaluronidase, or an allergy history not yet assessed
  • Active infection or irritated skin at the treatment site, or current pregnancy or breastfeeding
  • A wish to remove filler that is not in fact the cause of the shape you dislike

When the material is not hyaluronic acid, the consultation turns to how that material behaves over time and what can be offered around it. One poly-L-lactic acid product that Rewind itself uses is described on the Olidia page.

After

Afterwards

After dissolving existing filler: what reappears and what to watch

Removing gel that has been in place for a long time can reveal changes it was hiding. Expect the area to look different from how you remember it before any filler went in.

Same day
Puffy on top, emptier beneath
Injection swelling and loss of gel happen together, so the first evening misleads. Photographs from that night are not a fair record of anything.
First day
Clinic guidance for injectables
Rewind's aftercare for injectables applies: for the first day, avoid hard exercise, drinking and saunas, and keep hands and pressure off the site. Cold packs shorten a bruise.
Following weeks
The face underneath returns
Your tissue restores its natural hyaluronic acid over time. Laxity or hollowing that the old filler was masking may now show, and that belongs to the face itself.
Review
Remaining gel, or a new plan
If some filler remains, a further measured pass is discussed. If a different material has been left behind, the options for it are explained separately.

Swelling, bruising and tenderness at the injection points are expected. The specific risk of this enzyme is allergy, from localised itching and swelling to rare reactions affecting the whole body. Dissolving can take more volume than hoped, leaving a hollow or unevenness until your tissue recovers. Infection is uncommon. Where several products share an area, only the hyaluronic acid part responds, so the result can be partial. Contact the clinic or emergency care straight away for spreading swelling, hives, difficulty breathing or any change in vision.

Doctor

Professional

At Rewind, one board-certified plastic surgeon carries every case — from the first consultation to the final follow-up. Because a face is a story, and a story deserves a single author.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi, board-certified plastic surgeonRewind,
Dr. Jonghwan Choi presenting at an academic session
Fig. 06 · Presenting to fellow surgeons at an academic session

Rewind's Doctor

Dr. Jonghwan Choi Medical Director

One surgeon, from the first
consultation to the last follow-up.

A board-certified plastic surgeon devoted to anti-aging lifting — with the precision and restraint built through years of craniofacial practice.

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

Existing filler and dissolving: eight questions answered

Can Rewind dissolve filler injected abroad or by a previous provider in Korea?
Yes, provided it is hyaluronic acid. The enzyme acts on the material, and where or by whom it was placed makes no difference to how it works. The area is examined first, and each treated area is charged at ₩80,000 with VAT added.
What information about the original product should I bring?
The product or brand name if you have it, the date of each session, the areas treated and any amount you were told. Photographs of a syringe label, box or treatment card serve as well as the originals. Mention any reaction after the injection and any earlier dissolving session.
My filler came with no brand name. Is dissolving still possible?
It can be, when your history and the examination point clearly to hyaluronic acid. A missing brand name on its own does not rule dissolving out. Where the evidence for hyaluronic acid is weak, the enzyme is not used, because it acts on no other material and would only add risk.
What happens if the product was not hyaluronic acid?
The enzyme leaves it untouched. Collagen stimulators such as poly-L-lactic acid or polycaprolactone, calcium hydroxylapatite gel and non-absorbable implants all lie outside what hyaluronidase can break down, so no enzyme is charged. The consultation covers how that material tends to behave and which options, if any, fit the area.
Could my area contain more than one type of filler?
Yes. An area topped up over several years can hold products from different sessions, and not all of them may be hyaluronic acid. The enzyme clears only the hyaluronic acid portion, so a mixed area may soften only partly. The review shows what remains and what it is likely to be.
Does an earlier reaction to hyaluronidase rule me out?
Tell the doctor exactly what happened and when. A previous reaction changes the risk picture, and depending on its nature, dissolving may be offered with extra caution or declined altogether. Allergy is the particular risk of this enzyme, so this part of your history carries real weight.
Will the doctor comment on how the original filler was placed?
The consultation is about what is in your face now and what can be done about it. You will hear which areas look like hyaluronic acid, which do not, and what dissolving could change. Assessing the earlier treatment is not part of the visit.
Why might the doctor suggest waiting before dissolving?
Signs of infection or irritated skin where the enzyme would go, a very recent injection that is still swollen, pregnancy or breastfeeding, or an important event within days can each make waiting sensible. An allergy history that is still unclear is another reason. The aim is a result that can be judged fairly.
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
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Scientific evidence

Filler materials, complications and the enzyme: sources for this page

These papers describe the range of filler materials that can sit in the face, including a polycaprolactone-based product and calcium hydroxylapatite, and set out how complications of hyaluronic acid and other fillers are avoided and managed according to expert consensus. None was conducted at Rewind Plastic Surgery or on patients treated here, and none was funded by the clinic. They inform how existing filler is approached; they cannot forecast your own result.