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Unhappy with Skin Around Eyes- Will Laser Resurfacing Help Me? Something Else? (photo)

asked 7 months ago by jl1435 in Austin, TX
Latest answer by Michael R. Macdonald, MD
Question viewed 684 times
Tags: under eyes, wrinkles, options, puffy eyes

I'm a 30-year-old female with fair, slightly freckled skin. I have been very unhappy with the skin around my eyes lately: it is puffy above the eye and slightly droopier on one side, and below the eye, the skin puffs up when I smile and there are some wrinkles forming. Are eye/eyebrow lifts the only ways to solve the eyelid problem? The botox did nothing. Perhaps I didn't get enough? I have been recommended laser resurfacing for under-eye wrinkles. Will this work?

11 answers to Unhappy with Skin Around Eyes- Will Laser Resurfacing Help Me? Something Else? (photo)

Proceed with caution.

It is essential not to make a mild issue worse with a poor choice. First your heavy upper eyelid fold is a very important facial feature. Eyelid lift or belpharoplasty will cause the eyebrows to fall. To compensate for this, some surgeons take every bit of available skin in the upper eyelid space. This also causes the eyebrow to fall and the effect is that the eyebrows look sewn to the eyelashes. Some surgoen take out all the fat in this tissue and hollow out... more

Kenneth D. Steinsapir, MD
Los Angeles Oculoplastic Surgeon

If you are unhappy with the simpler BOTOX treatment, laser resurfacing would definitely improve skin around eyes

At age 30, often a simple BOTOX or Dysport treatment will provide an easy solution to the fine lines in the crows feet area and even underneath the eyes. Perhaps you should give this one more time before considering a more aggressive approach. If you are still unhappy with the results from the simpler treatment, laser resurfacing would definitely improve a puffiness and/or wrinkling under your eyes. This type of laser treatment can be done with a more gradual approach, through a series... more

Michael R. Macdonald, MD
Bay Area Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.drmmacdonald.com

Eyelid sagging botox or laser

Botox might help lift the upper eyelids by treating the glabellar region between the eyebrows and outer eyebrow (tail of the eyebrow) and it might flatten the bulge of the lower eyelid muscle, but the latter 0ff-label indication, can induce puffiness of fluid collection if you're prone to this. An upper eyelid lift (blepharoplasty) and possibly brow lift can resuspend your eyebrow / upper eyelid complex. This however, based on your young age, may be a normal anatomic shape... more

Ronald Shelton, MD
Manhattan Dermatologist

Laser would be a poor choice

You mentioned that you were "slightly freckled". I therefore would avoid laser resurfacing. In your situation this could remove the freckles where the lasering is performed and give an unsightly demarcation where the freckles remain below this lasered area. I agree that an upper blepharoplasty with recreation of the tarsal crease (as is done in Asian eyelid surgery to make a more caucasion look) would give the best improvement. Your lower eyelids are showing the orbicularis muscle... more

Scott R. Brundage, M.D.
Grand Rapids Plastic Surgeon

Unhappy with Skin Around Eyes- Will Laser Resurfacing Help Me? Something Else?

The photos provided show excess skin of the lower eyelids that can easilly be removed with a lower lid skin pinch. The upper eyelids are quite full and both eyebrows are low in position. A Brow Lift would be required to raise the eyebrows, into the proper aesthetic position, which would decrease the upper eyelid fullness. At 30 years of age, it's unlikley that much, of the observed upper eyelid fullness, is really excess upper eyelid skin which typically appears later... more

Francis R. Palmer, III, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

Laser under the eyes can tighten the skin

You can also do a pinch lower eyelid lift to remove that skin. The YoungVolumizer is another way of improving the wrinkles in this area by volumizing your face in a natural way. Below is a video on laser resurfacing for you to watch and learn more about it. see video

Philip Young, MD
Bellevue Facial Plastic Surgeon

Treatment of eyelid bags

Your posted photos show upper eyelid puffiness due to a combination of brow drooping and excess upper eyelid skin. The percentage of each component can only be ascertained in a face to face examination. The lower eyelids become puffy with facial animation but in repose look fine. You say that botox did nothing but not where or how much was injected. Botox usually can only make this worse as botox to the forehead can only make the eyebrows droop down more etc. You need to wait for... more

Aaron Stone, MD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

What to do about eyelids?

What I am seeing in your pictures are upper eyelids with a poorly defined crease, and lower lids with a prominenet muscle roll and fine lines. For your upper lids I would recommend what is known as an anchor blepharoplasty. This is not a procedure based on taking away as much as reshaping. I see this problem mostly in younger patients like yourself. The muscle roll may respond to small amounts of botox. If you haven't tried Retin A for the wrinkles in your... more

Paul W. Loewenstein, MD
Milwaukee Plastic Surgeon

Will Laser tighten the lower eyelid skin?

Laser treatment of the lower eyelid skin will decrease the wrinkles. The type of treatment will determine how much. Fractional treatments drill many little holes through the skin but leave the majority of the skin intact. These treatments require little recovery time but multiple treatments to get good results. Laser resurfacing removes the outer layer of all the skin. The recovery is more intense and time demanding, but the results are more dramatic with only one treatment typically... more

Benjamin Dunkley, DO
Salt Lake City Facial Plastic Surgeon

Eyelid surgery or laser?

You should do well with a conservative upper lid blepharoplasty which can be simulated if you lift your brows a little. This should lift the excess skin off your lashes so your eyeliner and lashes will show better. Don't insist the surgeon remove all the puffiness from the upper lid because this will age you. From the photo, I mostly see generous orbilaris muscle rolls and some wrinkles on the side. The wrinkles are best handled with Botox. The orbicularis rolls respond well to Botox... more

Peter T. Truong, MD
Fresno Oculoplastic Surgeon

www.facialsurgerydr.com

Excess Skin around the Eyes

Laser resurfacing is unlikely to address your concerns. I would recommend a conservative upper blepharoplasty to address your upper lids. A blepharoplasty that removed a small amount of skin would allow you to see your eyelashes, which is what many of my patients want. However, excessive skin excision will give you a skeletonized, aged appearance. The bunching up of the lower lids when you smile is due to contraction of the orbicularis oculi muscle. This... more