Eyelid Lift (Blepharoplasty) in San Francisco
WHAT CHANGES CAN BE EXPECTED?
Upper blepharoplasty can remove skin excess and bulging upper lid fat.
Aging changes cause sagging of the upper eyelids and hide the skin between the eyelashes and
the upper lid crease. This is sometimes called hooding of the upper lids and can be
surgically treated. See the section on Facial Aging.
Lower blepharoplasty can remove excess lower lid skin and treat puffiness of the lower lids.
Upper and lower eyelids are treated separately, although the operations are commonly combined.
WHO IS A CANDIDATE?
Anyone with sagging or puffy eyelid tissues may benefit, and this can be in the thirties or later.
Some people have puffy lids at an even younger age. Patients with thyroid disease must have their
thyroid problems treated first.
HOW IS BLEPHAROPLASTY DONE?
Upper blepharoplasty is done through the upper lid crease, leaving a fine line that in most people
hides well even without make-up. If present, excess fat is removed. These days most people prefer
little fat removal, but this is something to discuss with Dr. Cedars. Excess skin is removed.
If the eyebrows are drooping down into the eyelid region it may be appropriate to consider a lift
of the forehead or fat injections into the brow region.
Lower blepharoplasty is usually done through an incision fairly close below the lower lid eyelashes.
This thin skin almost always leaves a very fine scar that is not very noticeable. Sometimes the
incision is made on the inside of the lower lid ("transconjunctival"), so there is no visible
scar at all!
Sometimes a puffy look of the lower lids is due to loss of normal fullness of the adjacent
upper cheeks and benefits from volume restoration by one of several techniques: re-draping of
the lower eyelid fat slightly down onto the cheeks as part of blepharoplasty; office injection
of a filling material; skin peel; facelift, to move up cheek tissue.
Upper and lower blepharoplasty can be done with intravenous sedation and local anesthesia.
Some people prefer to be asleep (general anesthesia).
AFTERCARE
Pain after blepharoplasty is typically mild, but most people will take a mild narcotic.
External sutures, when present, are removed after 5 to 8 days. People can return to light
work after 3 or 4 days to a week.
|
