As we age, many of us will begin to see some changes around the eye area. Sometimes it’s the position of the brow or the bags under our eyes; there’s usually something that tends to make us look tired or older. Dr. Stafford Broumand, a board certified plastic surgeon from New York City, discusses the new way he performs cosmetic eyelid surgery (also called an eye lift or blepharoplasty) that improves our looks without changing the overall shape of the eye.
By Stafford R. Broumand, MD
and Susan Kamyab
ThePlasticSurgeryChannel.com
When is comes to Eyelid Surgery Less is More
Back in the 90’s doctors would dismantle the eye during surgery and recreate it, causing the patient’s eyes to look much different than before. Dr. Broumand explains, “I thought this can’t be good. You can’t detach the lateral canthus, which is the outer part of the eye, and then try to recreate it and think that it’s going to be as good as it was before.” Many doctors are now starting to realize, it’s best to take less from the eye during surgery so you can maintain your original look.
The new change to the surgery is removing less, and actually adding a little fat from other parts of the body into the upper eyelid to give the patient a more full youthful look. “For the lower eyelid, we’ll either preserve the fat or re-position it so that we can get rid of the shadows that make our eyes look older and tired. What we are trying to do is smooth that area out,” says Dr. Broumand. Through this procedure you won’t look like a different person, you will look like a younger you.
Considering the Operation at the Right Age
Most people start to have concerns with the eye area in their 40’s, and Broumand says this is a good age to start thinking about having something done. There are plenty of options to discuss when speaking to a board certified plastic surgeon. You can go for non-invasive procedures with some resurfacing of the skin, or you can have surgery that will get rid of the bulging underneath the eyelids and the loose extra skin.
Recover in Blink of an Eye!
The surgical time for the operation is only one or two hours long. The recuperation is fairly short and normally there’s just a few days of bruising. Stitches are minimal and it’s possible you won’t need any stitches removed. Broumand says, “It’s a quick recovery and in three to five days you can be out in public. It’s possible you could have a few small blotchy bruises on the lower eyelid, but usually no more than that. Eyelid surgery can take years off your appearance by reducing bags, puffiness, smoothing out wrinkles, and giving you a more youthful and refreshed look.”