How Painful is Eyelid Surgery?

The eyelid surgery itself is quite painful during the procedure, and therefore is done under a general anesthetic. The fat pads on the upper and lower lids have deep proprioceptive pain fibers that will not numb up to the lidocaine and should not be done under a local anesthesia. The recovery period for eyelids is not painful at all; most patients only take a very few pain pills in their entire postoperative period.

In my experience, eyelid surgery is one of the least painful of all aesthetic procedures. Most of the discomfort is in the first few days and is more in the realm of itchy or watery eyes which is always relieved by cold compresses and lubricants. Those patients with pre-existing dry eyes may be prone to an exacerbation of symptoms and should have special attention to this.

Of course this is somewhat related to what specifically is done. Some eyelid surgery on the lower lid requires lifting tissue off the bone or putting sutures from the lid tendon to the bone and this can be more painful. Usually, it is quite well tolerated and cold compresses on a frequent time schedule post-op can help mitigate discomfort tremendously. Skin removal only is nearly painless and pain medication requirements are very limited. Most patients do exceedingly well. In fact, symptoms... more

Dear BHeZee Eyelid surgery is so comfortable that many of my patients elect to have eyelid surgery in the office under local anesthesia. This is actually ideal because it is very important to have the ability to assess the effects of surgery intraoperatively with the patient sufficiently cooperative to open and close the eyes. When surgery is performed under deep iv sedation or general anesthesia this very important aspect of being able to monitor the effects of surgery intraoperatively... more

Eyelid surgery can be done under local, IV sedation, or general anesthesia. Well performed anesthesia should make your experience comfortable and pain free. For your upper lids, local is adequate in most instances. The lower lids may be done under local anesthesia, although depending on the extent of the procedure needed, IV sedation is sometimes suggested. General anesthesia is an option, but is usually reserved for more complex issues and/or cases having multiple procedures, such as... more

Eyelid surgery is one of those operations that generally look more painful then it really is. Eyelid surgery is commonly done under local anesthesia. In fact, I do more blepharoplasties under local then under general anesthesia. Pain tolerance is also improved if some form of sedation is given along with the local anesthesia. The sedation can be oral or by IV. The upper lids are particularly well tolerated under local anesthesia. The lower lids generally have much more dissection associated... more

Eyelid surgery (blepharoplasty) involving either the upper or lower lids is a relatively easy procedure from which to recover. Most surgeons will suggest that the procedure be scheduled with either intravenous sedation or rarely under general anesthesia, so intraoperatively, there shouldn't be any pain. Post-op patients will offer complaints of tightness, eyelid swelling and temporary blurry vision, however these symptoms will clear rapidly. They are pleasantly surprised that there is... more