Marking and extraction on your upper arms are carried out by one of the clinic’s three resident medical directors: Dr. Hong Seung-hyuk, Dr. Maeng Woo-jae or Dr. Hong Yeong-ho. The back-of-arm fold, the inner arm, the bra line and the soft pad beside the armpit are outlined as separate palm-sized areas, and everything agreed comes out during the visit while you stay awake under local anaesthesia.
Before
After
Almost everyone who searches that phrase means the soft fold at the back of the upper arm that keeps moving after a wave. G Clinic addresses it with G-fat, an extraction procedure and never an injected solution: a fine cannula enters through a single micro-entry point per area, a dedicated suction device draws the fat cells out, and the volume has left your arm before you go home. The upper arm is mapped as palm-sized areas — outer upper arm, inner upper arm, bra line, the axillary pad beside the breast and the zone over the shoulder blade — with each agreed area quoted on its own and no ceiling on how much comes out of it. You stay awake under local anaesthesia while a resident medical director works. Most upper arms need one visit. What your own arms need is settled face to face at a free consultation.
Seven G Clinic arm courses photographed in the same standing position. Arms carry fat in different proportions, so treat these as illustrations of what extraction does to an arm line and not as a forecast of yours.
Each pairing above shows a G Clinic patient photographed at the clinic and published with their consent. Individual results may vary, and the gallery is offered for information without promising any particular outcome.
A single representative upper-arm case for smaller screens. The full set of seven sits in the gallery above on desktop.
This pairing is published with the consent of the patient shown. Individual results may vary, and it appears here for information without promising any particular outcome.
From the first marker line across your triceps to the compression sleeve going on, one of the three resident directors handles every stage in person.
You stand with your arms held out and the director draws. The back-of-arm fold, the inner arm, the bra line and the pad tucked beside the armpit each receive their own outline, because an arm reads as one silhouette while the fat under it sits in distinct pockets. Your goals, weight history and health background are reviewed in the same sitting. The consultation costs nothing and nobody asks you to commit that day.
Local anaesthetic is infiltrated across the marked zones on each side. You remain awake, you can talk, and you can tell the director exactly what you feel while the work proceeds. Sedation is available as an option at an additional cost for patients who would find a two-arm session easier that way, and the director will say whether it suits your case.
A patented special cannula travels the skin–fat layer first to prompt tightening. On an upper arm that step carries real weight, since this is the zone patients most expect to hang once it has been emptied. Extraction follows through the same micro-entry point per area, the suction device holding steady pressure while the director watches the line from shoulder to elbow.
A compression sleeve is fitted before you sit up and you are told how long to keep wearing it. You are also shown how to rest both arms above heart height for short spells during the first days, which helps fluid drain out of a limb. Follow-up body-care sessions on devices such as Noble Shape, MPR and Coolshape are available if the surface needs help settling.
Patients usually arrive naming one thing: the wing. That is the loose fold at the back of the upper arm which stays in motion after the hand stops, and it is the single most common reason people book this page. What the director sees at the mirror is broader. The outer upper arm carries the wing itself, the inner upper arm holds a softer layer that shows when the arm is lifted, the bra line is the roll that a strap presses into across the back, and the axillary pad sits beside the breast where a sleeveless top exposes it. Some patients also carry a fullness over the shoulder blade.
Each of those is roughly the size of your palm, and each is counted as its own area. Because you own two arms, treating a zone on both sides counts as two areas. Within any single area no limit applies to how much is drawn out, so the director works until the line is right and stops there.
How G-fat developed across three generations of technique, and how mechanical extraction differs from an injected lipolysis course, is set out on the G-fat Fat Dissolving Injection hub. This page keeps to the upper arm.
Booking arrives in waves, and the wave peaks before summer. Sleeveless dresses, wedding photographs, beach holidays and warm-weather uniforms all put the back of the arm on display at a moment when nothing can be hidden under a sleeve. Patients frequently want the change locked in with a month or two of margin, which is realistic when the volume leaves on the day of the visit.
The arm is judged as a whole line, though. Emptying the wing while leaving a full bra line simply moves the eye backwards, and a treated upper arm sitting above an untouched axillary pad can make that pad look larger in a strapless photograph. Directors therefore often propose the outer arm together with the bra line, or the outer and inner arm as a pair, so the shoulder-to-elbow curve stays even. Several arm areas fit into a single session because the fat is removed there and then.
If your interest runs past the upper arm down towards the elbow, the sibling Arm Fat Dissolving page covers the whole limb and how the forearm behaves. Patients arranging a full-body sequence often start with the midsection described on the Stomach Fat Dissolving page and add the arms on a second visit.
Upper arm G-fat suits people whose weight has been steady for a while and who can pinch a clear layer of fat at the back of the arm with the elbow bent. It is contouring for a defined patch of a limb. It does not reduce arm circumference caused by muscle bulk, and it does nothing for swelling that comes from fluid.
That last point decides several consultations. A patient with a history of lymphoedema, or with lymph nodes removed or irradiated on one side after breast surgery, is not offered arm extraction here; the director will explain why an arm with compromised lymphatic drainage is left alone and will refer the question back to the treating team. Pregnancy and breastfeeding rule the procedure out for the time being, uncontrolled medical conditions and certain medications do the same until they are settled, and patients with a BMI of thirty or above are assessed case by case with a surcharge applying where treatment goes ahead.
The other refusal is the arm that has already lost its fat. Where the skin hangs loose and the pinch test finds barely anything under it, taking the small remainder out would leave that arm looking worse, so the director says so and steers the conversation to G-Tight, the ultrasound-based option, or to a body-care course aimed at firmness. Skin quality drives the recommendation in the same way on the Inner Thigh Fat Dissolving page, where volume is only half of the assessment.
The volume change happens inside the session, since the fat is carried out of the room in the canister. What you see across the next few days is that reduction plus swelling, and on a limb held inside a sleeve the arm can feel heavy and tight before it feels smaller. The genuine outline emerges as fluid drains and the skin re-adheres to the tissue beneath it over the following weeks.
Upper-arm skin has its own habits. It is thin, it is stretched by every arm movement, and it has often been loosened already by earlier weight loss, so how it settles depends on your elasticity and on how much left the arm. This is precisely the concern the G-Lifting cannula pass is designed around, and your director therefore spends as long assessing the skin at the back of your arm as measuring the fat under it.
The extracted cells have left the arm. The cells still living in the arm can enlarge again if your weight climbs, so a steady weight protects the shape you walked out with. Some patients pair the visit with skin-quality work such as Skin Boosters, and because results differ from person to person, every case photograph here carries a consent note and a variability note.
This is a minimally invasive procedure carrying real risks, and your director goes through them with you before you agree to anything. Bruising, swelling and tenderness along the treated arm are expected in the first days, together with patches of numbness that take time to fade. Less frequently, patients develop surface irregularity, a seroma, firm nodules under the skin, skin laxity, infection at the micro-entry point, prolonged altered sensation, or visible asymmetry between the two arms.
An arm brings its own considerations. It is a mobile limb, so the treated tissue is being moved and stretched constantly while it settles; it hangs at your side, so fluid tends to travel downward when the arm stays low; and both sides are on show at once, which makes asymmetry more noticeable here than on the trunk. Tell the clinic your full medical history, all medication and supplements, any breast or lymph node surgery, and any previous reaction to anaesthetic.
Afterwards, wear the sleeve as instructed, keep each micro-entry point clean and dry, and contact the clinic promptly if pain, redness, discharge or swelling grows after the first few days. A resident medical director is on site during opening hours, so a doctor can always look at the arm.
Most arm patients leave under their own steam and return to desk work or light errands the same day. Typing is manageable straight away. Reaching overhead, carrying shopping bags and lifting a suitcase into an overhead locker are the movements people underestimate, and they feel tight for roughly a week, so plan the days after your visit with that in mind.
The compression sleeve is the part of arm recovery that differs most from the trunk. It stays on as directed, and short spells with both arms propped on cushions above heart height help fluid leave the limb faster in the early days. Swelling and bruising peak within the first two or three days and then recede, firmer patches can remain tender for a week or two, and the clinic body-care programme is there to help the surface even out. Loose sleeves and dark tops make that first week considerably more comfortable.
If you are flying in, keep a few days in Seoul afterwards so a director can inspect both arms before you travel, and expect to wear compression on the plane and to ask for help with your cabin bag. Coordinators fit the appointment around your itinerary once you send your dates. Patients treating a lower body zone on the same trip can compare the recovery pattern on the Thigh Fat Dissolving page.
Three routes to a slimmer upper arm, laid out so your consultation begins from the right question.
| On the upper arm | Fat dissolving injection | G-fat extraction | Surgical liposuction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where the fat goes | A solution shrinks the cells and the body clears them | Cells are pulled out of the arm by cannula and suction device | Cells are aspirated in an operating setting |
| Marks left on the arm | Repeated needle punctures across the back of the arm | One micro-entry point per treated area | Small incisions, usually sutured |
| Anaesthesia | Topical or none | Local, awake; sedation optional | Sedation or general anaesthesia |
| Visits needed | A course of weekly appointments | Usually one visit for the areas agreed | A single operation |
| Sleeveless timeline | Gradual across the course | Volume on the day, line refines as swelling drains | On the day, with a longer swollen phase |
| Back at the keyboard | Immediately | Same day for desk work | Days to weeks under compression |
| Best matched to | Small soft pockets on a slim arm | A defined arm volume removed in one sitting | Very large volumes across several zones |
This table is general information. Which route fits your arms depends on your anatomy, your skin and your health, and a resident director works through it with you at the free consultation.
Removing fat by suction while the patient is awake under local anaesthesia has been described in the peer-reviewed literature for many years. One report covers submental liposuction under local anaesthesia in a series of 695 patients (Aldihani, 2025). Another examines the safety of combined ultrasound and power-assisted liposuction performed in local anaesthesia (Sendur, 2022). A third tests the efficacy of a lower lidocaine dose in tumescent liposuction (Böni, 2010), which bears on whether an awake technique is workable at all. These papers describe the method category; they are not statements about G Clinic’s own results, and they say nothing about what your arms will look like. That conversation belongs with your director.
Arms are charged by area, on published rates that apply to every patient who walks in. One palm-sized area counts as one; anything treated on both arms counts as two; and the amount taken from an area is uncapped, so a fuller arm does not change the figure for that area. How many areas your plan needs is decided at the free consultation.
| Treatment | Option | Price (KRW) |
|---|---|---|
| G-fat fat extraction | per area (1 area ≈ one palm-sized zone; both sides = 2 areas) | ₩275,000 |
| G-Lifting (3rd-generation G-fat) | per area (1 area ≈ one palm-sized zone; both sides = 2 areas) | ₩330,000 |
| Ultra G-fat (ultrasound + extraction) | per area (1 area ≈ one palm-sized zone; both sides = 2 areas) | ₩385,000 |
Priced per area, not by volume: one area is roughly the size of your palm, treating both sides counts as two areas, and there is no cap on the amount removed from an area. Sedation (optional) and BMI 30+ carry an additional fee confirmed at consultation.
All prices in KRW, VAT included. Quoted at consultation; final cost depends on treatment plan. Published rates as of 2026-09-08.
Since 2018 G Clinic has made G-fat injection its own signature procedure in Gangnam, Seoul, clinic-reported past 20,000 cases. No fat is dissolved: you stay awake on local anaesthesia, one micro-entry per area admits a fine cannula, device suction lifts the fat, and volume leaves the same day, priced by palm-sized area. Third-generation G-Lifting stimulates skin tightening with a special cannula beforehand; Ultra G-fat adds ultrasound to the extraction. Read the full story on the G-fat Injection page.
The two work by different mechanisms. An injectable course places a solution that shrinks arm fat cells so your body can clear them over several weekly appointments. G-fat takes the cells out mechanically through a cannula and a suction device in one sitting under local anaesthesia, so the arm is physically emptier when you stand up. Both approaches are compared on the G-fat Fat Dissolving Injection hub.
The back of it. Almost every consultation opens with the fold over the triceps that keeps swinging after a wave, the part that shows in photographs taken from the side and pushes against a fitted sleeve. The inner arm comes second, usually noticed when the arm is raised, and the bra line arrives third once a patient starts looking at their own back view.
Yes, each one is counted separately. The bra line running across the back and the axillary pad beside the breast are their own palm-sized areas, distinct from the outer and inner upper arm, and anything treated on both sides of the body counts twice. The compensation is that no ceiling applies to the amount taken from any single area, so a fuller zone is treated on the same terms as a modest one.
Skin behaviour is the real limit of this procedure on an arm, and the outcome depends on your elasticity and on how much volume leaves. The G-Lifting cannula pass runs through the skin and fat layer before extraction begins specifically to prompt tightening in that zone, and the compression sleeve plus the body-care programme support the weeks that follow. Your director assesses your arm skin at consultation and tells you what is realistic.
Give yourself margin. The volume leaves on the day of the visit, but swelling masks part of the change for the first days and the arm keeps refining for weeks afterwards as fluid drains and the skin settles. Patients booking for a wedding, a holiday or a summer uniform usually want the procedure comfortably ahead of the date, and coordinators will work backwards from your calendar when you send your dates.
Yes. Each arm is numbed with local anaesthetic and you stay awake throughout, able to speak with the director and report what you are feeling as the work continues. Sedation is available as an option at an additional cost if you would prefer to be drowsy through a two-arm session, and the director will discuss whether that is appropriate in your case.
The sleeve goes on before you get up and stays on for the period your director specifies at the visit. Raising both arms onto cushions above heart height for short spells in the first days simply uses gravity: a limb held low collects fluid, and a limb held up drains it. Together the sleeve and the elevation shorten the swollen phase and make the settling line smoother.
In that situation the answer here is no. An arm with a history of lymphoedema, or with lymph nodes removed or irradiated after breast surgery, has compromised lymphatic drainage, and the directors do not offer extraction on such a limb. You are welcome to attend the consultation and be told exactly why, and the director will point the question back to the team managing that condition.
Probably something other than extraction. When the pinch test at the back of the arm finds very little and the skin already hangs, removing the small remainder tends to make that arm look worse. The usual recommendation is G-Tight, the ultrasound-based option, or a course of body care aimed at firmness. Being told that extraction is the wrong tool is a legitimate outcome of a free consultation.
The cells taken out of the treated area have left it. The cells that remain elsewhere in your body, including those left behind in the arm, can enlarge if your weight increases, so holding a steady weight is what protects the shape you leave with. Nobody at the clinic will tell you that the result is beyond the reach of future weight gain.
Expect bruising, swelling, tenderness and patchy numbness in the first days. Less commonly, patients experience surface irregularity, a seroma, firm nodules, skin laxity, infection at a micro-entry point, prolonged altered sensation, or asymmetry between the two arms. Because both arms are visible together, unevenness is noticed more readily here than on the trunk, which is part of why compression and follow-up matter.
It depends on where your arm actually carries volume. Many patients only need the zones above the elbow, which is what this page covers. If the fullness continues down towards the wrist, or you dislike the forearm as much as the triceps, read the Arm Fat Dissolving page and raise it at consultation, where the director will mark what genuinely needs treating.
Frequently, yes. Several arm areas are handled in a single session, and other body zones can be sequenced into the same visit or a later one depending on how much is planned. Some patients add facial work such as Face Lifting while they are in Seoul for a few days. Your director confirms what is sensible to combine and in which order.
Book a free consultation and one of the three medical directors will examine both arms in person, in Gangnam, Seoul, and tell you which areas are worth treating and which can be left alone. Rates are published per area, and the number of areas is fixed only once a director has examined you.
Book ConsultationEvery consultation and procedure at G Clinic is conducted on site by one of three resident medical directors — never handed to a substitute practitioner. All three are Family Medicine specialists who have cared for international patients for years.
G Clinic runs consultation-based G-fat lipolysis courses and non-surgical body-contouring programs for localized fat. Your course is planned by a resident director; pricing is shared at your free consultation — the same figures are quoted to every patient, with no separate visitor markup.
A resident director reviews your target areas — abdomen, arms or thighs — and plans a G-fat course spaced over a short series of sessions. Suitability and number of sessions are decided one-to-one at your free consultation.
Ask at consultationNon-surgical body-contouring options for localized fat that resists diet and exercise. Your director explains what each program does and what to expect before anything is scheduled.
Ask at consultationThe G Clinic name dates to a 2012 device-maker advisory appointment. Each recognition below is stated as issued by its organisation.
Verified reviews from our Google Business Profile.
Yesterday, I had a fat extraction procedure from Dr. Hong Young-ho. The staff, especially the doctor, were so kind that it was very comfortable. Right after the procedure, it was just a little uncomfortable yesterday because of swelling, but today there is almost no pain and I'm waiting for the swelling to go away to see the beautiful res…
Recommendations are made based on actual circumstances. The attitude is very good. Highly recommended.
I cannot recommend G-clinic highly enough. From the moment I walked in, my experience was nothing short of exceptional. The clinic itself is modern, clean, and welcoming. The front desk staff were incredibly warm and efficient. Checking in was a breeze, and they were very helpful with my new patient paperwork. The waiting time was minimal…
Process was perfect! I got some liposuction done, the doctor and staff were very nice and very professional. 100% would recommend anyone to get there procedures done here! They took out A LOT of fat! The doctor speaks perfect English as well!
Share your details and our team will reply through your preferred messenger. Consultation is free and pricing is quoted at your free consultation.
Thank you — our English coordinator will reach out as soon as possible.