Upper Blepharoplasty (Eyelid Lift)

With upper blepharoplasty, also called upper eyelid surgery, you can restore a lively and alert look to your eyes. Most people would agree that our eyes are the most important and noticeable feature of the face. But your eyes and surrounding structures go through many changes throughout life. Unfortunately, these changes can often decrease the liveliness and beauty of the eye area. Common changes include:

Loss of elasticity
Skin stretching
Sagging
Fat redistribution
Increased or decreased pigmentation
Puffy or excess skin

Some of these changes can cause the eye to be covered and create an older, tired eye appearance.

Upper eyelid blepharoplasty (sometimes referred as an “eyelid lift”) involves removing excess loose skin (and sometimes fat), giving the eyes a more youthful appearance with a more visible eyelid platform. Upper blepharoplasty may be combined with other reconstructive or cosmetic eyelid procedures, such as upper eyelid ptosis surgery (droopy eyelid surgery) and brow lifting, as each can contribute to a “heavy” or “droopy” upper eyelid area. For instance, if the eyebrow has drooped, it causes more skin to be “pushed” down to the upper eyelid area, causing excess skin, hence brow lifting may be necessary for such patients.

Upper Blepharoplasty Technique

29 year old female, with hooded upper eyelids, undergoes upper blepharoplasty (eyelid lift) under local anesthesia. Her whole journey, including preop, surgery, and postop recovery is shown (includes more graphic surgery clips).

Young beautiful woman with loose upper eyelid skin and upper eyelid deflation and hollowness due to fat loss, underwent combined upper blepharoplasty and upper eyelid filler injection under local anesthesia with oral sedation. Her entire journey is shown. Note more youthful rested eye appearance.

What Is Upper Eyelid Surgery?

Upper eyelid surgery is also sometimes referred to as an eyelid lift. The procedure involves removing excess loose skin (and sometimes fat). The goal is to give the eyes a youthful appearance with a more visible eyelid platform. It may be combined with other reconstructive or cosmetic eyelid procedures in many cases. Doing so can create a fully rejuvenated and fresh outcome.

Your eyes greatly impact how people perceive your attractiveness, youthfulness, and beauty. Unfortunately, as we age, the skin around our eyelids changes. In fact, it tends to become less firm, droopier, and puffier. Occasionally, the situation is severe enough to affect patients’ vision or cause them discomfort. Upper eyelid surgery can correct all of this.

Common combinations include droopy eyelid surgery and brow lifting. Each of these works to treat a “heavy” or “droopy” upper eyelid area. For instance, if the eyebrow has drooped, it causes more skin to be “pushed” down to the upper eyelid area. The result causes excess skin, so brow lifting may be necessary for such patients. Dr. Taban approaches each patient’s situation, focusing on finding the right surgeries to reach their goals.

Read Article Published by Los Angeles’ Dr. Taban About Combined Upper Blepharoplasty with Upper Eyelid Filler Injection

Read Article Published by Los Angeles’ Dr. Taban About Upper Eyelid Blepharoplasty Techniques.

Am I A Good Candidate For Eyelid Lift Surgery?

Upper eyelid surgery is often performed for cosmetic reasons, giving the eyes a more youthful, rested appearance. However, reconstructive upper blepharoplasty is done for patients who:

Have significantly sagging upper eyelids
Have skin covering the eyelashes
Want to improve eye comfort
Want to improve peripheral vision

It is extremely important to NOT remove too much skin (or fat) from the upper eyelids. Doing so can lead to a dreaded unnatural, surgical look. It can also cause an inability to close the eyes, dry eyes, and more. Even less skin removal is recommended for male upper eyelid surgery. This technique allows us to preserve their natural masculine appearance.

During your consultation with Dr. Taban, he will evaluate your eyes and face. He then comes up with a detailed surgical plan, customized to each individual patient. Every feature of it depends on your unique situation and desired goals. Dr. Taban will discuss any other complementary cosmetic procedures, such as:

Lower blepharoplasty (eye bags removal)
Droopy eyelid (ptosis) surgery
Double Eyelid Surgery
Canthoplasty
Brow lift
Eyelid fat injection
And more

Your plan may include any of these to achieve the best NATURAL looking, youthful cosmetic result.

Prior health issues may make the patient not a good candidate for the procedure. Factors that make surgical complications more likely are:

Severe dry eyes
Thyroid Disease
Diabetes

45 year old male with genetic and age related upper eyelid hooding underwent customized conservative male upper blepharoplasty.

Upper Blepharoplasty Procedure Overview

Excess loose upper eyelid skin is removed through a hidden incision. To minimize any visible scarring, Dr. Taban places this incision in the natural upper eyelid crease line. He takes care to preserve existing fat in this region as fullness in the upper eyelids can look more youthful. In fact, this procedure is sometimes combined with fat or filler injection. When injected into the upper eyelid/brow area, it can boost volume and reduce hollowness. If the eyelid is droopy, the muscle that raises the lid can also be tightened. Upper eyelid surgery is also often combined with lower aesthetic blepharoplasty. When combined this way, we call the procedure “Quad-blepharoplasty.”

Upper eyelid surgery is performed in a way to ensure optimal patient comfort. Your options include:

In the office under local anesthesia with oral sedation (similar to having a dental procedure)
In an outpatient surgical center with local anesthesia and IV sedation
Both options can lead to rapid recovery. With the patient relaxed, the eyelid is numbed. The patient can open and close their eyes during the procedure with comfort. This factor actually helps the surgeon achieve the best possible result.

Post Upper Blepharoplasty Recovery

The recovery process after upper eyelid surgery is very mild. You can expect some bruising/swelling for about 7-10 days but minimal discomfort. Vision remains intact during recovery since no patch is needed. The sutures are taken out about one week after surgery (although absorbable stitches can also be used). Once your stitches are out and you receive approval, you can resume normal activities.

Scar Line for Upper Blepharoplasty (Hidden in natural crease)

Photos of a 42 year old woman show 3 months after upper blepharoplasty with eyes open and eyes closed. Note the scar is hidden in the natural crease line and is very subtle.

Photo showing healing 1 week after upper blepharoplasty and lower blepharoplasty in a beautiful woman.

Photos show the average healing of UPPER BLEPHAROPLASTY during the first one of surgery..

Young woman underwent upper blepharoplasty and upper eyelid filler injection. Note healing during the first week after surgery.

38 year old female, with saggy and deflated aged upper eyelids, underwent combined upper blepharoplasty and upper eyelid filler injection. Note quick healing with more youthful eye appearance.

Photo shows subtle scar in a young woman who underwent upper blepharoplasty. The scar is hidden in the natural crease line.

Removal of stitches 1 week after upper blepharoplasty.

Who Should Perform Upper Blepharoplasty Surgery?

Natural results are key to any cosmetic procedure, especially for the eyes. Dr. Taban is an oculoplastic specialist and a reconstructive and cosmetic eyelid plastic surgeon. His expertise lies directly in cosmetic and revision blepharoplasty surgery.

He is double board-certified by:

The American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASOPRS)
The American Board of Ophthalmology (ABO/AAO)

He also stands as a diplomat of the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery (ABCS). It is highly recommended that all eyelid procedures be performed by a board-certified oculoplastic surgeon. General ophthalmologists and surgeons are permitted to perform the procedures. However, they often do not have the skill set required to achieve optimal results! Dr. Taban fits all the qualifications for delivering an optimal outcome to every patient.

Schedule Your Consultation

Dr. Taban is one of the leading oculoplastic eye surgery doctors in the LA region. Your eyes are one of your most important features. Give them the medical care they deserve and contact our Greater Los Angeles Area offices. You can set up a consultation for upper eyelid surgery with board-certified oculoplastic surgeon Dr. Taban. Contact us via online support form or telephone at (310) 278-1836.

Before & After Surgical Treatment Photos

*See disclaimer below

41 year old female, underwent upper blepharoplasty (eyelid lift) and scarless lower blepharoplasty. Note natural refreshed results after eyelid surgery.

Young man, with hooded tired upper eyelids, underwent male upper blepharoplasty with natural results.

58 year old female, complained of eyelid aging with saggy upper eyelids and under eye bags and hollowness. She underwent upper blepharoplasty and lower blepharoplasty (transconjunctival technique with eye fat repositioning and skin pinch).

Before (left) and 3 months after (right) underwent cosmetic eyelid surgery including upper blepharoplasty, lower blepharoplasty, and lateral brow lift.

Before (left) and after (right) 68-year-old female, with saggy upper eyelids and brows, underwent cosmetic upper blepharoplasty and lateral pretrichial brow lift.

Before (left) and after (right) 55 year old female, with droopy forehead/brows and excess upper eyelid skin, looking tired and angry, underwent endoscopic forehead lift and upper blepharoplasty. Before and 3 months after cosmetic surgery photos are shown.

Before (left) and 3 months (after) cosmetic upper blepharoplasty (skin removal) and lateral brow lift (outer brow lifted using temple hairline incision).

Before (left) and 3 months after (right) bilateral ptosis surgery, upper and lower blepharoplasty, and pretrichial lateral brow lift.

45 year old woman, with upper eyelid aging with loose eyelid skin and fat loss creating sunken hollow upper eyelids, underwent combined upper blepharoplasty and upper eyelid filler injection. Note more rested youthful eye appearance.

Lower 60+ year old female, looking tired and older, underwent droopy upper eyelid ptosis surgery, upper blepharoplasty (eyelid lift), lower blepharoplasty, and lateral brow lift. Before and 2 months after cosmetic eyelid surgery photos are shown. Note more youthful natural results.

Young beautiful woman, with loose upper eyelid skin and upper eyelid hollowness, underwent upper blepharoplasty plus upper eyelid filler injection plus canthoplasty. Note resultant more youthful eye appearance.

55 year old woman, with tired/older eye appearance, underwent upper blepharoplasty (eyelid lift).

Young beautiful lady with hooded upper eyelids (with skin touching the lashes) underwent upper blepharoplasty (eyelid lift). Before and 2 months after eyelid surgery photos are shown.

Young woman, with hooded saggy loose upper eyelid skin underwent upper blepharoplasty. Before, 1 week after, and 1 month after surgery results are shown.

Young woman underwent upper blepharoplasty (to correct loose saggy upper eyelid skin folds) and lacrimal gland repositioning (to correct lacrimal gland prolapse) and upper eyelid filler injection (to correct upper eyelid hollowness). Her before and selfie after photos are shown.

African American gentleman with asymmetric upper eyelid hooding underwent male upper blepharoplasty. His before and 2 months after selfie photos are shown. Note the scar is hidden in the crease and subtle and it will get even better with time.

40 year old woman, with tired eye appearance due to eyelid aging, underwent cosmetic upper blepharoplasty, lower blepharoplasty (transconjunctival technique with skin pinch), droopy upper eyelid ptosis surgery, and upper eyelid filler injection. Note more youthful eye appearance. Note the scar is healing nicely and hidden in the natural upper eyelid crease.

Middle age woman, with hooded upper eyelids due to saggy eyelid skin, underwent customized upper blepharoplasty (eyelid lift).

43 year old man, underwent customized male upper blepharoplasty and scarless lower blepharoplasty (transconjunctival technique with eye fat bags repositioning).

Young woman, with hooded upper eyelids, underwent customized upper blepharoplasty (eyelid lift). The incision/scar is hidden within the natural eyelid crease.

Young woman, with genetic under eye fat bags and hooded upper eyelids, underwent customized upper blepharoplasty and scarless lower blepharoplasty.

VIEW MORE PHOTOS

CONTACT THE LOS ANGELES OCULOPLASTIC EXPERT

Dr. Taban is one of the leading oculoplastic eye surgery doctors in the LA region. Contact us via online support form, or via telephone at: (310) 278-1836

Next, read about the lower blepharoplasty surgery.

*Disclaimer: Results vary from patient to patient. Results are not guaranteed.