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Blepharoplasty and Coumadin

asked 1 year ago by Wahoo2370 in Wahoo
Latest answer by Francis (Frank) William Rieger, MD
Question viewed 455 times
Tags: age 45-54, female, coumadin, medication

I Am a 45 Year Old Woman on Coumadin, is It Possible/safe to Have Blepharoplasty?

12 answers to Blepharoplasty and Coumadin

+2

Blepharoplasty and Coumadin

Blepharoplasty is an entirely elective (not medically necessary) procedure whose worst complication is blindness that is rare but usually associated with bleeding around the eyeball.  Consequently, you cannot have a bleph while on Coumadin.  Only if you can be off all blood thinners entirely for 2 weeks before surgery and for 2 weeks after surgery is it even possible to consider.
Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS

Seattle Plastic Surgeon
+1

Coumadin usage in having surgery.

Your Internist or Cardiologist will need to be consulted before this decision can be made. In general, blood thinners will need to be stopped for two weeks before as well as after elective surgery to minimize the tendencies for bleeding..Hematoma formation can ruin very effective surgery if it were to be severe. This cooperative effort between your Plastic Surgeon and your Internist will be critical in making this decision for you. Good luck to you. more
Francis (Frank) William Rieger, MD

Tampa Plastic Surgeon

www.riegercosmeticsurgery.com

+1

Eyelid surgery and coumadin

The answer is yes, and you should coordinate with your hematologist or primary care doctor.  It just involves using a lovenox bridge, where you use lovenox while you are holding your coumadin.  The morning dose is held before surgery and usually resumed in a day. Best, Nima Shemirani
Nima Shemirani, MD

Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon
+1

Blepharoplasty, Eyelid Surgery, Coumadin and Blood Thinners

The answer is yes IF you coordinate your care with your internist. You'll need to stop your blood thinner medication for a certain period before and after surgery (typically a total of three weeks or so). Not stopping your medication would increase your risk of bleeding to an unacceptable level. If you can speak with your internist (or whomever is prescribing that medication for you) and explain what you want to do, you'll find out what has to be done in order... more
Alan Engler, MD

New York Plastic Surgeon
+1

Discontinue Coumadin before Blepharoplasty surgey

While it is a safe and common practice for some patients to remain on Coumadin for more minor surgical procedures, blepharoplasty surgery is not one of those procedures.  Blindness is a rare complication following a blepharoplasty and is thought to be caused by bleeding behind the eye.  A successful outcome is certainly possible with a patient on Coumadin, but the risk of a serious complication would certainly be much higher.  I would not recommend taking that risk for an... more
Roger J. Oldham, MD

Bethesda Plastic Surgeon
+1

Eyelid surgery and coumadin

It is possible to have eyelid surgery while on anticoagulation. It is important, though, you are of coumadin for several days and take another medicine like lovenox.
Sandy Sule, MD

Dallas Facial Plastic Surgeon
+1

Blepharoplasty Can Be Safely Done In The Patient On Coumadin With Proper Medical Management

Performing blepharoplasty on a patient who is on anticoagulation is all about managing the stoppage and resumption of the medication. The first step is to ask your physician if you can be off Coumadin for a short period of time. If not, then you should not undergo any form of elective plastic surgery. If your physician deems it medically safe, then you need to stop taking it five days before surgery and you may resume it 48 hours after surgery, providing your physician agrees. They may... more
Barry L. Eppley, MD, DMD

Indianapolis Plastic Surgeon
+1

Coumadin and Eyelid Surgery

The simple answer is yes. We can perform blepharoplastys on patients on blood thinners as long as the cardiologist or Internist allows Coumadin to be stopped for a period of time to allow normal blood clotting. Bleeding is one of the potential complications of blepharoplasty. In my opinion, a blepharolplasty should not be performed if coumadin can not be stopped. The risk of stopping coumadin must be discussed with the prescribing Doctor. In cases such as an arrythmia, often the... more
David Schlessinger, MD

New York Oculoplastic Surgeon

schlessingereyeandface.com

+1

Coumadin + Blepharoplasty = VERY Bad Idea

If you had eye surgery while on Coumadin you blood would not clot and you would end up with massive bruising around the eye (I doubt your surgeon would be dumb enough to cut the other side once encountering the bleeding). Worse yet, the rarest complication of eye surgery make be more likely. Bleeding behind the eye ball - RETROBULBAR HEMATOMA can put pressure on the back of the eyeball and result in blindness. The real question is NOT should you have surgery on Coumadin but can YOUR... more
Peter A. Aldea, MD

Memphis Plastic Surgeon
+1

Blepharoplasty and coumadin.

Yes, you can have a blepharoplasty. Your surgeon and internist can stop the coumadin enough to let the surgery be done and then started again.
Toby Mayer, MD

Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon
+1

Botox and Coumidin

Great question.  I require my paients to have their INR normalized (be completely off of Coumadin) prior to blepharoplasty.  The reason for this is that any blood thinners such as asprin, coumadin, plavix, NSAIDS raise your risk for one of the worst complications associated with blepharoplasty......an orbital hematoma which can lead to blindness.  When you weigh the risks associated with this elective cosmetic surgery and the risks of significiant complications it just doesn more
Gregory Branham, MD

Saint Louis Facial Plastic Surgeon
+1

Blepharoplasty

That is a question that not only is on the mind of patients, but constantly a topic of discussion among surgeons. And unfortunately, there is not an easy answer. When planning surgery, we always need to weigh the risks vs the benefits of surgery. The risk of stopping blood thinners is possible adverse blood clotting events such as stroke. Admittedly, the risk of such an event is relatively low, however the risk is there. The risk of not stopping blood thinners is adverse bleeding events,... more
A.J. Amadi, MD

Seattle Oculoplastic Surgeon

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