Eyelid Surgery in Scottsdale
It gives a rejuvenated appearance to the surrounding area of your eyes.
Eyelid surgery, also known as blepharoplasty, improves the appearance of the upper eyelids, lower eyelids, or both. It gives a rejuvenated appearance to the surrounding area of your eyes, making you look more rested and alert. Blepharoplasty includes repairing droopy eyelids by removing excess skin, muscle and fat. As you age, your eyelids stretch, and the muscles supporting them weaken. As a result, excess fat may gather above and below your eyelids, causing sagging eyebrows, drooping upper lids and bags under your eyes. Besides making you look older, severely sagging skin around your eyes can sometimes impair your peripheral or side vision.
Blepharoplasty can reduce or eliminate such impaired vision and is usually done on an outpatient basis. To help decide if blepharoplasty is right for you, find out what results you can realistically expect and take time to explore the benefits and risks of the procedure.
Eyelid Surgery Considerations
A blepharoplasty procedure is usually performed on adult men and women who have healthy facial tissue and muscles and who also have realistic goals for improvement of the upper and/or lower eyelids and surrounding area. The following conditions could indicate that eyelid surgery is right for you:
• Baggy or puffy upper eyelids
• Excess skin obscuring the upper eyelid fold
• Extensive drooping of the upper eyelid
• Droopy lower eyelids that may cause white of the eye to show below the iris
• Excess skin and fat pockets below the eyelids
• Hollows or “dark circles” around the lower eyelids
You should only undergo blepharoplasty surgery for yourself. Do not proceed with this surgery to fulfill someone else’s desires or to try to fit an ideal image.
Eyelid Surgery Options
There are two types of blepharoplasty available: Lower lid and upper lid. Depending on the patient’s needs, these procedures can be performed separately or together.
In upper eyelid surgery, the surgeon first marks the individual lines and creases of the lids in order to keep the scars as invisible as possible along these natural folds. The incision is made, and excess fat is removed or repositioned, and then the loose muscle and skin are removed. Fine sutures are used to close the incisions, thereby minimizing the visibility of any scar.
In lower eyelid surgery, the surgeon makes the incision in an inconspicuous site along the lash line and smile creases of the lower lid. Excess fat, muscle, and skin are then trimmed away before the incision is closed with fine sutures. Eyelid puffiness caused primarily by excess fat may be corrected by a transconjunctival blepharoplasty. The incision in this case is made inside the lower eyelid, and excess fatty material is removed.
Eyelid Surgery - What to Expect
Blepharoplasty is usually done in an outpatient setting after administering local anesthesia. Dr. Bash usually recommends that for your comfort and safety, you have an anesthesiologist give you general anesthesia. For some patients, it is possible to perform the surgery with a local anesthetic and medicine through the IV that makes you “groggy”.
If you have surgery on your upper and lower eyelids, the surgeon generally works on your upper lids first. The surgeon makes an incision along the natural fold of the upper eyelid. Then excess skin and some muscle and fat beneath the skin are removed. The incision is closed with tiny stitches that leave a nearly invisible scar. Sometimes surgical tape or skin adhesives are used instead.
The incision on the lower lid is made just below the lashes in your eye’s natural crease or inside the lower lid. The surgeon removes or redistributes excess fat, muscle and sagging skin. Depending on where the initial incisions are made, stitches may follow the lower lid’s natural crease or be placed inside the lower eyelid.
Blepharoplasty usually takes about an hour, depending on the amount and location of tissue being removed. Afterward you spend time in a recovery room, where you are monitored for complications. You can leave later that day to recuperate at home.
After blepharoplasty a lubricating ointment will be applied to your eyes to protect them and prevent dryness. The ointment may cause temporary blurred vision. You may also experience excessive tearing, light sensitivity and double vision just after the surgery. Your incisions will be red and visible at first, and your eyelids may be puffy and feel numb for several days. Swelling and bruising, similar to having “black eyes,” will likely last a week or more. Ice packs or cold compresses applied to your eyes can help reduce swelling. If stitches were used, they’ll be removed after 5-7 days.
Pain is usually minimal. You may be given a pain reliever, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol, others), for mild discomfort, but remember to avoid aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others), naproxen (Aleve), and any other medications or herbal supplements that may increase bleeding.
With upper lid eyelid surgery, the lifting of the skin over the eye will make your eye appear rounder and more alert than it was before the procedure, but the procedure should not significantly affect the natural shape of your eyes. Blepharoplasty will usually last for years. However, the aging process will eventually render additional procedures necessary in order to maintain results.
Eyelid Surgery Risks
Each year thousands of men and women undergo successful eyelid surgery (blephoraplasty) procedures, experience no major problems and are happy with the results. Significant complications from eyelid surgery are infrequent. However, make sure you understand what surgery involves, including possible risks, complications and follow-up care. Eyelid surgery poses various risks, including:
• Temporary numbness of the eyelid skin
• Temporary vision changes or blurriness
• Dry and/or irritated eyes
• Persistent fat or loose skin and muscle
• Impaired eyelid function
• Infrequent visual changes or loss
Like any major surgery, a blepharoplasty poses a risk of bleeding, infection and an adverse reaction to anesthesia. It’s also possible to have an allergic reaction to the surgical tape or other materials used during or after the procedure.
You can help minimize certain risks by following the advice and instructions of your surgeon, both before and after your eyelid surgery. If you have any concerns about the risks involved with eyelid surgery, please consult your surgeon.
