Eyelid Surgery in Reston, VA

Upper Eyelid Surgery

For upper eyelid surgery, one of the components to consider is the position of the brow. If the brow is low, our plastic surgeons may recommend having a brow lift at the same time.

Assuming the brow is in good position, upper eyelid surgery focuses on the extra skin, muscle and fat of the upper eyelid. The incision is placed in the natural eyelid crease and is extended outward as far as necessary to address the skin folds located outside the upper lid. Through this incision, your plastic surgeon will treat the extra muscle and/or fat as necessary, and then the skin is closed with sutures that need to be removed 5-7 days after surgery. Upper eyelid surgery may have some bruising and swelling but most patients can go back to work in a week. Depending on ethnicity, variations in the surgical plan can be made to alter or create an eyelid crease as well. This is sometimes known as 'double eyelid surgery' in Asian patients. 

Lower Eyelid Surgery

For lower eyelid surgery, there are 2 main options regarding the incision. For patients with only bags but tight lower eyelid skin, the incision is placed inside the lower eyelid. This procedure is also known as a transconjunctival blepharoplasty. There is no external scar underneath the lower eyelashes. 

For a traditional lower eyelid blepharoplasty, the incision is placed just below the lower eyelashes and through this incision, the lower eye bags can be addressed. Excess skin can also be removed using a traditional lower eyelid surgery. 

For patients with minimal bags, no extra lower eyelid skin, and just hollow circles, the noninvasive lower eyelid procedure of using filler or fat grafting can also have great results. 

Call for an appointment with one of our plastic surgeons to find out which procedure fits your needs. In general, patients considering lower eyelid surgery take at least one week off work and those having filler alone can go back to work the same day. 

Upper and Lower BLEPHAROPLASTY

Many patients show signs of aging in both the upper and lower eyelids and choose to have both addressed at the same time. This is a safe and effective option for patients wanting to maximize results with a single recovery period. 

Eyelid surgery is usually an outpatient procedure performed under general anesthesia in our accredited surgical facility. For isolated upper eyelid surgery, some patients choose to have this done under just local anesthesia.

After surgery, patients can expect the eyelids to be bruised and swollen, which is helped with ice packs, medicated eye ointments or eye drops, and elevating the head. These symptoms should last a few days. Eyelid recovery is usually easy for most patients and normal activities can be resumed within a week. Some patients have bruising for longer and need coverup makeup to get back to work at the 1-week mark.

Revitalize Your Eyes

No longer should you allow your eyes to age you beyond your years. Find out what procedures are right for you to eliminate the signs of facial aging. When you’re ready to transform your eyes and overall appearance, please feel free to set up a consultation to learn more about eyelid surgery.