As you grow old, both your upper and lower eyelids may become droopy and baggy. The eyebrows may also droop. All these happens because your skin starts stretching and the muscles weaken. You look sleepy and prematurely old. Many think that this is an irreversible situation; however, the opposite is true. It can be corrected with a simple eyelid surgery.

This kind of surgery to improve the appearance of the eye is called blepharoplasty or in common parlance, ‘eyelift’. In the upper eyelid, fat and excessive skin is removed by the eyelift surgery by incisions. The incisions are closed with fine sutures. In the lower eyelid, incisions are made either inside or outside of the eyelid to remove the fat. In both cases, the incisions are closed with fine sutures. The incisions made on the inside are not visible at all. Incisions made outside are barely visible and they fade away in course of time.

The eyelift is an outpatient procedure in most cases. Normally, an eyelid surgery takes less than three hours. Many hospitals also have dedicated outpatient facilities. If you are having plastic surgery, you may have the blepharoplasty also along with that. In that case, you may be required to get admitted into the hospital and stay overnight in the hospital. Staying in the hospital costs more than being an outpatient and going through the procedure.

During the surgery the skin is separated through the incision and the excessive fat is removed. If loose muscles are found, they are trimmed.  The surgeon makes sure that the muscles are attached. Then the incision is closed and stitched using the narrowest gauge suture. At least in some cases, there is excessive fat in the lower eyelid, but the eyelid does not sag. This normally happens at a younger age. In such cases, a procedure called transconjunctival blepharoplasty is performed. In this procedure, the incision is made inside the lower eyelid and the bag of excess fat is removed. Along with an eyelid surgery, your laugh lines, also known as crow feet, at the outer ends of both eyes can be improved. The surgery can reduce the length of the crow lines and thus improves your looks.

After an eyelid surgery, the patients encounter some difficulties. But they are purely temporary. Redness and swelling around the incision appear after the surgery initially. Tears may appear excessively. If dryness appears in the eye after the surgery, it can be countered by suitable ointment. When the ointment is applied, temporary blurred vision is common. The eye may be sensitive to light until recovery. For the tightness of the eyelid, it is lubricated with ointment. Dark sunglasses are recommended for sensitivity to light. All these are only purely temporary symptoms. A complete recovery is achieved by about ten days after the surgery.

An eyelid surgery improves your looks a great deal. It eliminates the bags beneath your eyes. It also reduces the wrinkle around your eyes. The cumulative effect of all these is that you regain your youthful look and your self-confidence is increased.