Analysis Report

Yonsei UP Plastic Surgery Clinic

Chief Director Lee Gun-chang In-depth Analysis

Anti-aging One-person Responsible Care Natural Results

Key Summary

Hospital Identity

Yonsei UP Plastic Surgery Clinic is located near Apgujeong Station in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, and has been operating in the same location without moving for over 18 years. It prioritizes 'safety' and 'naturalness' as its core values.

Medical Staff Expertise

Chief Director Lee Gun-chang is a plastic surgery specialist and Doctor of Medicine who graduated from Yonsei University College of Medicine and served as a professor at Severance Hospital. He is particularly known for adhering to anatomical principles in facelifts, paranasal augmentation (noble surgery), and rhinoplasty.

Key Procedures

The hospital's signature procedures include 'UP Lifting (Facelift)', 'UP 3D Rhinoplasty', and implant-based 'Paranasal Augmentation (Noble Surgery)'. In particular, regarding paranasal augmentation, they hold a technical philosophy of positioning implants through precise dissection without fixing them with screws.

Reputation & Features

They tend to emphasize substantial surgical results and patient safety rather than flashy marketing. Their 'honest counseling' style, which involves not recommending unnecessary surgeries and clearly explaining surgical limitations and potential side effects, has gained trust among patients.

Chief Director Lee Gun-chang Profile

Education and Qualifications

  • •
    Education: Graduated from Yonsei University College of Medicine and obtained a Ph.D. in Medicine from the same graduate school.
  • •
    Qualifications: Acquired Plastic Surgery Specialist certification (Medical license in 1996, Specialist certification in 2004).

Career and Academic Activities

  • •
    Key Career: Completed Plastic Surgery Residency at Shinchon Severance Hospital, served as Professor of Plastic Surgery at Yonsei University, Advisory Doctor and Adjunct Professor of Plastic Surgery at Yonsei University.
  • •
    Academic Activities: Regular Member, Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons; Korean Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association; International Confederation for Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery (IPRAS); Member, Blepharoplasty Research Society and Rhinoplasty Research Society.

This career suggests that Director Lee possesses a deep understanding not only of simple cosmetic surgery but also of reconstructive surgery and high-difficulty facial surgeries where anatomical knowledge is essential.

Hospital Information and Philosophy

Basic Hospital Information

Yonsei UP Plastic Surgery Clinic is located on the 2nd floor of Taeam Building, 18 Nonhyeon-ro 175-gil (579-6 Sinsa-dong), Gangnam-gu, Seoul.

Situated in the plastic surgery hub near Apgujeong Station, the fact that it has continued medical practice in one place without moving for over 18 years since opening is a significant indicator of the hospital's management stability and patient trust.

Medical Philosophy and Brand Identity

The hospital's brand name, 'UP', is interpreted to have a double meaning of lifting effect (Up) and boosting the patient's confidence (Up). The operational philosophy is medical treatment faithful to 'basics and principles'.

Unlike large franchise hospitals, it maintains a 'one-person representative director system' where Chief Director Lee Gun-chang personally handles the entire process from consultation and surgery to post-operative care. This has the strength of being free from 'shadow doctor' (surrogate surgery) controversies and enabling responsible treatment for each individual patient.

Major Medical Fields and Procedures

Yonsei UP Plastic Surgery covers various fields, but stands out particularly in **Anti-aging (Lifting, Wrinkle Surgery)** and **Rhinoplasty** fields.

Facelift and Lifting (UP Lifting)

  • **UP Lifting (Facelift):** Aims for an orthodox facelift that dissects and pulls the **SMAS (Superficial Musculo-Aponeurotic System) layer** under the skin, rather than simple skin excision.
  • **Mini-lift Revision:** Clinical view that even patients who have previously undergone a facelift can be re-corrected through a mini-lift if the SMAS layer was not properly dissected or if adhesions are not severe.
  • **Indication Screening:** Does not recommend facelifts to all patients; performs customized diagnoses, e.g., recommending laser treatments for fine wrinkles without facial shape changes.

Paranasal Augmentation (Noble Surgery)

  • **Surgical Method:** Insists on **intraoral incision** to precisely dissect the space and accurately position the implant.
  • **No-Fixation Principle:** Does not perform screw fixation, based on the theory that "if the space fitting the implant size is precisely dissected, the implant does not move." Reduces unnecessary foreign bodies and aids recovery.
  • **Side Effect Prevention:** Emphasizes carving and using implants of appropriate thickness suitable for the degree of the patient's skeletal depression to prevent side effects.

Rhinoplasty (UP 3D Rhinoplasty)

  • **UP 3D Rhinoplasty:** Designs a three-dimensional nose line considering the individual's facial contour and proportions.
  • **UP Tip-Up Nasal Tip Plasty:** Focuses on creating a sophisticated image by lifting a drooping nasal tip, and implements natural movement using autologous cartilage, etc.
  • **Revision Surgery:** Handles high-difficulty revision cases such as contracted noses, deviated noses, and humped noses, focusing on analyzing the causes of previous surgical failures and restoring them.

Eye Surgery and Others

  • **Eye Surgery:** Performs natural adhesion double eyelids, ptosis correction, canthoplasty, and upper/lower blepharoplasty. Has particular strength in middle-aged eye surgery (upper blepharoplasty, brow lift).
  • **Special Wrinkle Surgery:** Offers procedures that permanently or semi-permanently improve expression lines through glabellar wrinkle blocking and forehead lifts.

Reputation and Patient Review Analysis

A comprehensive analysis of various plastic surgery communities and review data shows the following.

Positive Evaluations

  • **High Trust and Safety:** Patient trust in the 18-year accident-free career and the representative director's sole responsibility system is high.
  • **Honest and Realistic Counseling:** Director Lee Gun-chang clearly explains the medically possible and impossible ranges rather than fueling patients' fantasies during consultations.
  • **Natural Results:** Many reviews state that they pursue natural improvements that do not disrupt the harmony of the original face rather than plastic surgery that looks excessively obvious.
  • **Post-operative Care:** There are evaluations that they meticulously handle swelling management and scar checks after surgery.

Points to Consider and Critical Opinions

  • **Preference on Consultation Style:** The honest and direct speech style may feel somewhat blunt or unfriendly to some patients.
  • **Conservative Approach:** It may be more suitable for patients wanting natural restoration rather than young patients wanting dramatic and flashy changes.
  • **Cost:** There is a perception that the price range is formed somewhat high compared to hospitals that overuse low-price events, but this seems to be a pricing considering expertise and safety.

Comprehensive Analysis and Conclusion

Recommended For

  • **Middle-aged Group:** Patients in their 40s to 60s who want to naturally improve sagging due to aging.
  • **Safety-oriented Patients:** Patients who want to be cared for by the representative director from start to finish without worrying about surrogate surgery.
  • **Patients Considering Paranasal Augmentation:** Patients who have an aversion to implant fixation screws or want precise surgery through intraoral incision.
  • **Pursuing Naturalness:** Patients who want to improve their impression without looking like they had obvious plastic surgery.

Summary of Features

Chief Director Lee Gun-chang continues efforts to convey correct plastic surgery knowledge to patients through YouTube channels, etc., and emphasizes the philosophical basis of middle-aged plastic surgery, citing Lincoln's words, **"You must be responsible for your face after 40."**

Technically, **lifting based on a precise understanding of the SMAS layer** and **paranasal augmentation respecting anatomical structures** are analyzed as the biggest competitive advantages.

In conclusion, Yonsei UP Plastic Surgery can be evaluated as a hospital that focuses on the **essence of medicine** rather than flashy marketing. If you confirm through sufficient consultation that your needs match the director's surgical style, it is a medical institution where satisfactory results can be expected.