What is an upper blepharoplasty?

 

Upper blepharoplasty is an operation performed to bring back the youthful, attractive upper eye appearance involving one or a combination of resection of excess skin, removal of bulging fat and muscle, aesthetic placement of the supratarsal crease, and filling /contouring of a deep upper orbital sulcus with fat injection or transfer.

 

 

 

How is upper blepharoplasty surgery done?

 

Blepharoplasty surgery is most often performed under local anesthesia. Sedation or general anesthesia may be utilized in appropriately selected patients. First, the blepharoplasty incision is measured and marked. Subsequently variable amounts of skin, soft tissue and fat are removed to achieve a pleasing and youthful appearance of the eyelid and to improve the visual field. After the desired amount of excision is accomplished skin incisions are closed with sutures.

 

 

 

Do I need an upper blepharoplasty, a browlift, or both?

 

With aging, the upper lid skin becomes redundant (dermatochalasis), the visibility of the upper eyelid may be effaced ("hooding") due to skin laxity and/or brow ptosis, and lateral hooding may obstruct the visual field. The brow position should always be assessed before attempting blepharoplasty: the brow lifting procedure may obviate the need for blepharoplasty. If a forehead lift is indicated at the same time, the brow lift is performed first before an upper lid blepharoplasty, as the amount of upper lid redundancy is significantly reduced after correction of the brow position.

 

 

 

What can I expect after surgery?

 

There would be mid to moderate moderate swelling and the ecchymosis of the skin. Cold compresses are frequently applied for the first 48 hours to reduce swelling and ecchymosis. The degree of swelling and ecchymosis differs markedly from patient to patient. Either way the swelling and the ecchymosis both subside within 7-10 days, after which time it is typically hardly notable that you just underwent surgery.

 

 

 

Will I have a bandage or dressing after surgery?

 

A bandage is not used after the surgery. A steril strip may be used which is changed or removed after one to three days, and ointment is applied over the suture daily for approximately 1 week in patients with external approach. Artificial tear drops can be prescribed to prevent dryness during the  early postoperative period.

 

 

 

Will I need my sutures to be removed?

 

The skin sutures are removed 5 -7 days after the surgery.

 

 

 

Will I be in pain after the surgery?

 

The upper eyelid blepharoplasty is a minimally invasive procedure. Pain after surgery is typically very mild and well controlled with pain medications. A mild analgesic (non-aspirin containing) is used to control the postoperative discomfort for one to five days.

 

 

 

Will I have any visible scar?

 

There is no such thing as a scarless surgery and any type of incision on the skin will leave a scar. However, the incision of upper blepharoplasty is very well camouflaged by the upper eyelid crease, and often not visible after complete healing.

 

 

 

How long will I be off from work?

 

Generally speaking the recovery period after lower eyelid blepharoplasty is short and you may start doing your daily routines as soon as the first to third day. The swelling and ecchymosis persist rarely longer than few weeks and almost never limits patient mobility.

 

 

 

Can I wear make-up after surgery?

 

You can start wearing make-up 4-5 day after the surgery.

 

 

 

How long can I expect the outcome of surgery to last?

 

It is not possible to stop the effects of aging and after surgery this process continues. In time your face will age and the effects of surgery will decrease. The aging process is extremely variable among people so it is impossible to tell how long the effects of upper blepharoplasty will last, but it is generally expected that the results of surgery last approximately 10-15 years.