Are There Things Than Can Speed Up the Recovery from Eyelid Surgery?

Eyelid surgery involves soft tissues that normally move a lot, in a highly visible area.  For a "fast" recovery, you want to avoid visible bruising, and also like to decrease swelling.  Technically, your surgeon will do their best to minimize bleeding and will be gentle with the tissues to minimize swelling.  After surgery, your activities are the most important determinant as to how quickly you will recover.  For the first 48-72 hours, swelling will normally increase, so you should work to combat swelling by keeping your head elevated and using mild cold therapy (I prefer wash colths moistened in ice water - frost bite is not possible with this technique).  Bruising is related to blood at the time of surgery, or new amounts of small bleeding after surgery.  The highest risk period for bleeding is the first 2 days, so you should minimize motion during that time period.  Since the eyelids move every time you open your eyes, ideally you should lay back, relax and listen to music (or an audio book) for the first 2-3 days.  If you read or watch TV, the lids will be opening / closing and the eyeball will be moving (in the area where fat was removed), which can increase bruising. 

Other, non-motion/position related issues for bruising / swelling are related to diet.  To decrease swelling you should avoid salty foods.  For bruising - avoid fish oil / oil vitamins and certainly don't take aspirin!  I think that Arnica Montana and Bromelain do help with resolution of bruising / swelling, and recommend them to my patients (as long as there are no allergy issues).  Speak with your surgeon before adding anything to your post-operative regime.

Best regards,
Dr. B

The best thing to do after eyelid surgery is to ice the surgical area, I recommend 15 min every hour whenever you can, especially for the first three days. But you don't need to stay up to do icing of course. And also over the counter Arnica is liked by a lot of my patients as a dietary supplement after surgery to decrease bruising and swelling.

There is no cream or medication that can speed up recovery, however-
- keep swelling down
- no strenuous activities
- NO SMOKING
- healthy body healthy mind- good balanced diet and positive cognitive activities 
- follow your surgeon's instructions ;)
Wish you the best in your journey,
Dr Leo Kim, Specialist Plastic Surgeon in Sydney