The eyes are the first thing we notice when we meet someone new. Beautiful eyes can make up for other features that are less than ideal. Likewise, eyes that are tired, droopy, or swollen may not reflect a vibrant inner self. It is often said that the earliest signs of aging are around the eyes. You may feel that the eyes looking back at you in the mirror every morning are old and tired looking, or maybe people are always questioning whether or not you had a good night’s sleep because your eyes are swollen with bags. Fortunately, cosmetic procedures can give you dramatically younger eyes through “eyelid lifts”, also known as blepharoplasty.

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A primary reason for droopy eyes is simply due to age. As everything droops, so do the eyebrows. As the outer parts of the eyebrows droop, the skin of the upper eyelids will look saggy, as if you had developed extra skin that was not there several years before. Trimming this “extra” skin can drastically improve that droopy look.

Another reason for “tired eyes” is because of droopy or migrating eyelid fat. This fat is held back by a thin wall of fibrous tissue called the orbital septum, which sags over time. The fat, held firmly back by this wall in youth can bulge with age, giving you “baggy” upper and lower eyelids. Blepharoplasty trims this extra fat and tightens the wall, restoring a youthful contour.

THE SURGERY

Eyelid lifts can either be done alone or together with face and neck lifts or eyebrow and forehead lifts. If done alone, the operation takes about one and a half hours for all four eyelids (both upper and both lower eyelids). Blepharoplasty of the upper eyelids alone typically takes less than 30 minutes and is most often performed under local anesthesia only.

Ultra Pulse Laser eyelid surgery (or blepharoplasty) is the preferred treatment for removing bags under the eyes or drooping eyelids, conditions that can add years to your appearance, and even impair your peripheral vision. In those cases whereby the upper eyelid drooping is significant enough, oftentimes medical insurance may cover the upper eyelid blepharoplasty.

For those patients with puffiness under the eye or baggy upper and lower eyelids, laser eyelid surgery can reduce and often eliminate these problems.  The end results are a more alert and youthful look around the eyes.

THE RECOVERY

Recovery from eyelid surgery is complete within seven to ten days. A small amount of lumpiness is usual at the corners of the eyes. Minimal blurry vision quickly resolves. Sunglasses allow you to go out in public immediately after surgery, and make-up can be worn within about one week. Normal activity can be resumed the next day, and exercise can be resumed within 7 to 10 days after surgery.

MUSCLE TIGHTENING

Another type of “eyelid lift” procedure is generically referred to as “muscle tightening” of the upper eyelids. This procedure is done for those eyelids whereby the upper eyelid margin physically slowly migrates down close to or even in some cases blocking the person’s pupil, thereby causing a restriction in peripheral vision as well as heavy, tired eyes, eye fatigue, arched furrowed forehead, and sometimes brow strain.

Typically, this type of muscle weakness occurs gradually over years and is due to age-related weakness of either the Levator or Mueller’s muscle of the upper eyelid. In less common cases, this may occur more rapidly as a result of either surgical trauma, blunt injury, or due to a neurological condition such as ocular myasthenia gravis.

Muscle-tightening surgery to physically elevate the upper eyelid above the pupil may be done as either a “conjunctival-muellerectomy” or a “levator advancement”. Such procedures when done alone are done under local anesthesia and may take 30 to 60 minutes to perform. Sometimes muscle tightening is done only for one upper eyelid, but most often it is done on both upper eyelids. Quite often the muscle-tightening surgery may be done in combination with upper eyelid blepharoplasty, but less often as its own stand-alone procedure.

OTHER OPTIONS

Sometimes eyelid lifts are combined with other procedures called endoscopic eyebrow and forehead lifts to improve the height and maintain the contour of the upper eyebrow. Dr. Justo will discuss whether you might benefit from this combined procedure during your initial consultation.

Visit our cosmetic surgery / plastic surgery, and ophthalmology (eye care) offices located in Sun City, Wickenburg and Sun City West, Arizona (AZ). Our offices are conveniently located near the Phoenix and Glendale, AZ areas.