what is the difference between upper blepharoplasty and ptosis correction
hooding or drooping of the upper eyelids that gives you a tired look is often seen with normal
facial aging if you are considering cosmetic enhancement of your upper eyelids to help
you look more refreshed then you should know the difference between excess skin over the eyes and
eye muscle related drooping eyelids why because these are two distinct issues and are managed
very differently I often see patients who had cosmetic upper eyelid surgery performed elsewhere
who still feel that they looked tired because of their drooping eyelids this often means
that the operating surgeon didn't address a condition called ptosis a medical term to describe
a drooping upper eyelid I'll discuss the difference between hooded upper eyelids and ptosis
as well as how i address these conditions in my practice I'm Dr Amiya Prasad I'm a diplomate
of the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery and a Fellowship-trained oculofacial plastic and
reconstructive surgeon I've been in practice in New York City and Long Island for over 25 years
I perform a range of cosmetic eyelid surgeries to treat issues like hooded upper eyelids
puffy under eye bags and Asian double eyelid surgery
as an oculoplastic surgeon I trained first in ophthalmology so I perform specific types of
eyelid surgery that's usually not done by general plastic surgeons such as treating eyelid ptosis
upper and lower eyelid retraction and treating eyelids affected by conditions like thyroid
eye disease so how do we differentiate eyelid hooding from drooping upper eyelids or ptosis
upper eyelid hooding is typically due to the eyelid skin stretching or sagging due to collagen
loss and changes in skin elasticity as your upper eyelid skin changes it folds upon itself so there
appears to be excess hooded skin over the eyes this condition is referred to as dermatochalasis
when you have drooping eyelids or eyelid ptosis the position of the eyelid margin
where the edge of your eyelashes emerge is lower than it normally would be
people with eyelid ptosis are often aware that one eyelid is actually lower than the other
some people aren't even aware that their eyelids have descended significantly
and are delighted to experience how much better they feel when their eyes are actually more open
other people have told me that they struggle to keep their eyes open and they feel fatigue from
straining to keep their eyes open eyelid ptosis associated with aging is typically
due to a stretching or detachment of the muscle that lifts the eyelid called the levator muscle
levator is the word like the word elevator without the letter e interestingly ptosis
can be present with dermatochalasis making the diagnosis of ptosis at times kind of challenging
as I mentioned earlier the treatment strategy for hooded upper eyelids or dermatochalasis is
different from eyelid ptosis so an accurate diagnosis is very important surgery for upper
eyelid dermatochalasis is more than just skin deep the eyes are three-dimensional so addressing
the deeper soft tissue is very important to achieve a natural and aesthetic result
many patients express to me their concerns about being able to close their eyes after surgery they
ask these types of questions because they're aware of individuals who had eye-related problems due to
the inability to properly close their eyes after aggressive upper eyelid skin removal
I help people from around the world who have had this type of problem with advanced reconstructive
procedures such as skin grafting to the upper eyelids to replace lost skin as an oculoplastic
surgeon I'm familiar with dry eyes and other ophthalmologic issues which need to be factored
in when planning cosmetic eyelid surgery I always say that eyes that look good function well my
surgical aesthetic focuses on natural looking results which are more youthful and vibrant
not plastic although redundant eyelid skin can be present at the same time as eyelid ptosis
many people learn the hard way that removing eyelid skin alone will not treat eyelid ptosis
as I stated earlier I see a lot of people who had upper eyelid surgery and then come to me
to address their eyelid ptosis which wasn't taken care of initially eyelid ptosis requires
specialized surgery to shorten or reattach the levator muscle or another muscle called
Mueller's muscle I routinely perform cosmetic upper eyelid surgery or blepharoplasty with ptosis
surgery I perform a lot of my ptosis procedures from the underside of the upper eyelid there are
times when I only perform the ptosis surgery without making any incisions on the outside
I perform upper eyelid blepharoplasty as well as ptosis correction surgery using local anesthesia
with LITE IV sedation my patients avoid the side effects often seen with general anesthesia such as
nausea and vomiting in addition to prolonged recovery from surgery
so in closing I want to encourage anyone considering upper eyelid cosmetic surgery
to understand the difference between upper eyelid hooding and upper eyelid
ptosis if you suspect that you have ptosis as well as hooded upper eyelids
a proper evaluation will help you have the procedures that are best suited for your situation
I hope you found this information helpful thank you for your question
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