There is always a range of what one would consider a normal recovery period - some of which is dependent on the type of procedure, patient compliance with post operative instructions (light activities, cool compresses, etc), and finally random chance. In general, the "recovery" from upper eyelid surgery is shorter than lower, ranging from 7 to 10 days. (The final result takes longer, as the thin eyelid skin will show edema [swelling] for months, but only such that the surgeon and patient will notice - it should be inconsequential in social encounters.) Lower eyelid operations have a wider range of recovery times, as the extent of individual procedures vary from very simple (transconjunctival blepharoplasty) to extensive and complex (multicomponent seperation blepharoplasty). As such, lower lid recovery can range from 7 days to a month or so. Make sure you ask your surgeon how long the recovery normally will be for the particular type of procedure that they are proposing for you.
Upper or Lower?
Michael A. Bogdan, MD answers: Eyelid surgery recovery
I cannot afford to miss more than 2 weeks of work when recovering from blepharoplasty procedure. Can a plastic surgeon describe the post-op recovery typical for patients.
A: The recovery time from blepharoplasty is mostly...
The recovery time from blepharoplasty is mostly dependent on the amount of bruising and swelling which occur. Unfortunately, there is no way to tell in advance how much bruising and swelling there will be. For some patients who are not concerned with other people knowing they had surgery, the amount of bruising is not an issue and they return to most normal acitvities in 2-3 days. For others, 2 weeks is a good time course.
In addition to the bruising and swelling, care should be taken for about 2 weeks not to get your heart rate or blood pressure up as this can cause bleeding. Unfortunately there are reports of delayed bleeding in the eye which can cause blindness.
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