Eyelid Surgery - Blepharoplasty

Eyelid surgery, or blepharoplasty, perks up drooping eyelids and minimizes puffy bags below your eyes by removing fat and excess skin and muscle from your upper and lower eyelids. The procedure can make you look younger and more alert; however, it will not lift droopy eyebrows or erase crow’s feet or dark circles under your eyes. To correct droopy eyebrows, you may want to consider a brow lift.

Most eyelid surgery patients at Augusta Plastic Surgery are 30 or older, though some have the surgery at a younger age if baggy eyelids are a family trait. If you are physically healthy and emotionally stable, you should be a good candidate.

What does eyelid surgery involve?

The incisions are made in the creases of your upper lids and right below the lashes of your lower lids. The doctor removes excess fat and trims baggy skin and muscle, then closes the incisions.

If you need fat but not skin removed from your lower lids, we may recommend a procedure called a transconjunctival blepharoplasty. The doctor makes an incision inside your lower lid and removes the excess fat, leaving no visible scar.

Eyelid surgery typically takes one to three hours, though that depends on whether you are having all four lids done or just the upper or lower ones. It is usually performed on an outpatient basis.

What should I expect after my eyelid surgery?

Right after the surgery, your eyes will be lubricated with ointment and possibly bandaged. The lids may feel sore and tight, but your discomfort can be offset with medication.

Your stitches will be removed within a week, after which the bruising and swelling will begin to fade. You should be able to watch television or read in two or three days and return to work within a couple weeks. Strenuous activity must wait three weeks.

Your scars will look slightly pink for at least six months after the surgery, but eventually they will fade to a nearly invisible white line.