I think my doctor bungled my eyelid surgery. Doctors and patients please look at photo and comment. Photo is taken 9 days post .

doctordeb7 31 Jan 2012

My oculo-ps gave me Arbonne oil to smooth over the incision site. I applied moist heat for a few days. I could tell the incision site was smoother and flatter right off the bat; but it took about 1-2 months for the site to fully heal. Now, 10 months later only I can see the scar. The surgery didn't hurt at all (numbed up but awake). For 3 days it was sore and red (I put a bandaid over the lid crease and brow area and went back to work on day 3). One thing I'm learning about facial plastic surgery: every day post-op there's some change. No sense getting jittery about a scar, bump or sensation. Tomorrow it'll resolve and they'll be something else! I don't even buy the 6-month rule. It takes at least a year or more for everything to fall into place. And then, what you loved at first might fall and what you hated might shine! Also, I think ps tend to do more eyelids than necessary; it happened to me. I actually needed a brow lift. Brows must be harder to do....hhmmmmm.....

Chris Thiagarajah, MD 12 Nov 2011

Patience....I would wait...I tell patients to be patient. 9 days is just out of the surgery. You can't even begin to talk about how a surgery went until 1-2 months. This is like doing 2 questions of a 200 question exam and getting them wrong and saying "well I am going to get a zero on this test". You need to wait. \

View answers from Chris Thiagarajah, MD

NHaven 20 Oct 2011

My oculo (and life-saver!) opened up the existing but poorly healed, raised scar line on my lid that was used for the blepharoplasty and failed brow lift. I was awake but sedated and he did it in an operating room where the light was really good rather than florescent office light...hmmmm....It seemed like he took up a slight amount of skin above the lid fold or simply anchored the fold from the underside so it doesn't show, and it raised up the fold. When he cleaned the scar tissue off the underside of my lid and made a nice, sweet, flat row of stitches, the combination worked. His name is Dr. Scott Sigler in Edmond, Oklahoma. I can't tell you how he restored my faith in surgeons. Send him your picture. Maybe he can do a video consult. Best wishes.

Greenbrae 27 Jan 2012

Just wondering how much healing/swelling/pain/time was involved in the scar revision? Was it as much as the actual initial eyelid surgery? The surgeons will all minimize all of the above for some reason. I know it is individual, but I would believe what you said more. Thanks~

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NHaven 19 Oct 2011

I went to an oculoplastic and reconstructive plastic eye surgeon and he raised one eyelid crease up slightly to match the other. At the same time he cleaned up the scar tissue under my lid so the scar flattened and has nearly disappeared (it's been 7 months since the repair but the improvement was obvious a few days postop repair). But, I agree with the others that unless you are having trouble closing your eye naturally, wait 6 months before any revision because the eyes keep improving and may match naturally. It would be awful to raise one crease and then the other shifts! Best wishes to you.

popthehood 20 Oct 2011

How did they do that? Did they make a new incision after stitching up the old one?

Mine is 2 years old now but I knew from the get go it wasn't right.

popthehood 19 Oct 2011

My bleph eyelids look asymmetric like yours. The lines look similar. One eye healed nice and looks natural while the other eye, the fold is higher and rounder even when I open my eyes. If you found a way to fix it, let me know please!

asif.tiv 26 Sep 2011

It's good to educate - thanks for sharing your mind.

Santa Barbara7926 18 Jul 2011

Trust me when I say that it takes 4 to 6 months for the assymetry (caused by swelling) to resolve. I panicked when I saw two different eyes up until the 5 month mark! Even at 6 months there is a tiny difference - but I still see swelling and there are sensitive spots under my eyes. I had upper and lower and from what I have read lower surgery is far more risky and takes much longer to heal (up to a year before the under eye area scar tissue heals). I wish everyone luck and patience!

lamac 18 Jul 2011

your eyes look like mine did how are you doing? I am six weeks post op and still uneven.

Santa Barbara7926 23 May 2011

well they surely don't feel as heavy! when i was tired or had a few glasses of wine they were practically closed! now they are much lighter and more open.

jeanene m 23 May 2011

my doctor said upper eyelid surgery would help my eyes not feel so tired at night

Santa Barbara7926 23 May 2011

At 4 months post op my eyes are occasionally tired (I wear contacts about 12 hours a day). Sometimes they water a little, however they did this before the surgery as well. Time definitely heals!

jeanene m 22 May 2011

Do your eyes feel less tired at night?

NHaven 23 Mar 2011

Arbonne makes an oil for scar reduction that says "don't use around eyes" but my oculoplastic reconstructive surgeon gave it to me for my eyelids! It feels great and seems to work. Although the warm washcloth three or four times a day might be what is really working. Scars are healing....Best of wishes to you.

Santa Barbara7926 22 Mar 2011

My left incision above eye was much higher than my right until about week 8 - now it is almost even. Swelling distorts everything so give it more time before you consider more surgery. I also had what appeared as wrinkly fat hanging over the above incision that has also begun to smooth out. I was so disturbed that I wasn't perfect at week three (like they tell you), but after reading many many posts I see that a 3 to 6 month time frame of healing is more realistic..

Santa Barbara7926 22 Mar 2011

I also wanted to say that I had a couple of hard bumps on the upper incisions. After trying a little bit of neosporin, then cortisone, and then salicylic acid they eventually went away. Don't know which one worked..

pianistnao 18 Jun 2011

Santa Barbara7926, your posting has been helping me so much. You cannot imagine how I appreciate your notes. I have been freaking out when my eyes are not looking better everyday(I am at post-op 10days). Pre-op, I was bothered so much about my eye lids sagging from my point of view, but people always said they were so beautiful and young. The reason they looked good from people were beucase of my eyelids were beautifully folded "deeply" which was actually sagging part. When you closed eyes or tried to make up, you will see the end of the eyes are downwards. People could not see it. But of course surgeon could see and we went for surgery to get rid of the excess skin. He said he only do subtle job to make me makeup better(since I had to tilt the mirror when making up for my eyes)and all of his patients post-op pic were so subtle. But now my eye lids look very unnatural because I do hope they are still swollen: between eyelash line and folding like is (double lid part) sticking out, widen, and still purple. I cannot go out for this unnatural look. But your note is like the valium...thank you.

NHaven 17 Mar 2011

My incisions looked similar but within four months have fully healed and can barely be seen. As far as uneven folds, is it obvious when your eyes are open or do the sutures fall within your eyelid crease?

Orange County CA5853 15 Jan 2011

They have healed in to raised incison lines and bumps. I do not want this dr to do any revisions on me however, the quandry: other doctors won't consider revisions until after 6 months. yes, I know, things may improve but I know that I will need some sort of medical help, be that cortizone injections, cysts removal.., just don't what this guy to lay another medical device on me or in me!