Eyelid Surgery (Blepharoplasty)

Eyelid surgery, or Blepharoplasty, is a procedure to remove fat, usually along with excess skin and muscle, from the upper and lower eyelids.

Eyelid surgery can correct drooping upper lids and puffy bags below your eyes - features that make you look older and more tired than you feel, and may even interfere with your vision. However, it won't remove crow's feet or other wrinkles, eliminate dark circles under your eyes, or lift sagging eyebrows.

Photos Courtesy of Dr Davidson, San Diego 

While it can add an upper eyelid crease to Asian eyes, it will not erase evidence of your ethnic or racial heritage. Blepharoplasty can be done alone, or in conjunction with other facial surgery procedures such as a facelift or browlift.  Eyelid surgery and browlifts are often done in combination with each other to achieve the youthfulness that many people are looking for 5 to 10 years before they need a facelift.

Blepharoplasty usually takes one to three hours, depending on the extent of the eyelid surgery. If you're having all four eyelids done, the surgeon will probably work on the upper lids first, then the lower ones.

In a typical procedure, the surgeon makes incisions following the natural lines of your eyelids: in the creases of your upper lids, and just below the lashes in the lower lids. The incisions may extend into the crow's feet or laugh lines at the outer corners of your eyes.

Working through these incisions, the surgeon separates the skin from underlying fatty tissue and muscle, removes excess fat, and often trims sagging skin and muscle. The incisions are then closed with very fine sutures.

If you have a pocket of fat beneath your lower eyelids but don't need to have any skin removed, your surgeon may perform a transconjunctival blepharoplasty. In this procedure the incision is made inside your lower eyelid, leaving no visible scar. It is usually performed on younger patients with thicker, more elastic skin.

After surgery, the surgeon will probably lubricate your eyes with ointment and may apply a bandage. Your eyelids may feel tight and sore as the anaesthesia wears off, but you can control any discomfort with the pain medication prescribed by your surgeon.

Your surgeon will instruct you to keep your head elevated for several days, and to use cold compresses to reduce swelling and bruising. Bruising varies from person to person; it reaches its peak during the first week, and generally lasts anywhere from two weeks to a month.

The stitches will be removed two days to a week after surgery. Once they're out, the swelling and discoloration around your eyes will gradually subside, and you'll start to look and feel much better.

You should be able to read or watch television after two or three days. However, you won't be able to wear contact lenses for about two weeks, and even then they may feel uncomfortable for a while.

Most people feel ready to go out in public (and back to work) in a week to ten days. You may be sensitive to sunlight, wind, and other irritants for several weeks, so you should wear sunglasses and a special sunblock made for eyelids when you go out. Your surgeon will probably tell you to keep your activities to a minimum for three to five days, and to avoid more strenuous activities for about three weeks.

Average Price Range: Upper Lids $2200-$4500      

                             Lower Lids $2200-$4500      

                             Both Upper & Lower $4400-$8000

Please ask your doctor for further information.