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Treatments for Wrinkly Skin After Upper and Lower Blepharoplasty?

asked 3 years ago by lisa in SA in San Antonio
Latest answer by Brooke R. Seckel, MD
Question viewed 978 times

I've had upper and lower blepharoplasty. I am left with loose wrinkly skin. I have had a peel, microdermabrasion, as well as Botox. What other treatments can I try to get rid of this wrinkly skin?

13 answers to Treatments for Wrinkly Skin After Upper and Lower Blepharoplasty?

Loose skin after blepharoplasty

When upper eyelid skin is crepey, peels or retinoids usually help, but it sounds as though you have already tried those. If there is little more skin that can be removed, it may be a problem that can be minimized but not eliminated. No doubt you have been assessed for drooping of the brow as well, which can contribute to eyelid skin excess, particularly on the sides. For the lower eyelids, if loose skin is present, it may be possible to perform a cheeklift to tighten the skin. I know... more

Brent Moelleken, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

www.drbrent.com

Fractional Erbium Ablative Laser Resurfacing can improve wrinkly skin after upper and lower blepharoplasty

Excess wrinkly or 'crepey" skin left after upper and lower blepharoplasty is a very frustrating problem. The most conservative and effective treatment is laser resurfacing of the eyelid skin. The eyelid skin is very thin and CO2 laser resurfacing can be too powerful for the eyelids if power settings are not reduced. Today, newer Fractional 2940 Erbium laser Resurfacing can be safely done on eyelid skin to remove wrinkles and toighten the skin. While secondary surgery is certainly... more

Brooke R. Seckel, MD
Boston Plastic Surgeon

www.drseckel.com

Excess skin should be conservatively removed

Wrinkly skin can be removed conservatively on the lower lids by taking a small pinch out at the lower lash line and closing it with tissue glue or soluble stitches. The excess wrinkling skin on the upper lids is very difficult to remove. You have to be very conservative on upper eyelid skin so that you can still close your eyelids after the surgery.

William Portuese, MD
Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.seattlefacial.com

Surgery

I can only assume you're referring to the lower lids. One of the most difficult decisions a surgeon has to make when doing a lower lid blepharoplasty is how much skin to remove. Most of us have seen the horrendous results then too much skin is taken. So to be on the safe side most of us follow the surgical rule of "take less now and go back later to take more if you have to." This is likely what your surgeon did-a good decision. But since the excess that wasn't taken can't be... more

Christopher L. Hess, MD
Fairfax Plastic Surgeon

Clinical exam and follow up is needed

Give it some time first. There are so many options available, but they must be individualized to you. Get an advice from a board certified plastic surgeon before you try more treatments.

Hisham Seify, MD, PhD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

Wrinkly textured skin may improve with some lasers

Lisa in SA: You mention having a number of eyelid procedures. As other comments suggest, we would not want you to have more done too soon after the other treatments. Discuss this subject with your surgeon before you go further. One of the discussions I have with eyelid blepharoplasty patients pre-op is to try and separate the elements of skin looseness and of skin texture problems that we will be treating. Blepharoplasty removes loose skin and tightens. Eyelids cannot be made as tight... more

Sutton Graham II, MD
Greenville Plastic Surgeon

Don't rush into more procedures

Whenever you have surgery around your eye, it is best to be very patient before embarking on additional procedures/surgeries. The tissues are the eye are very sensitive and very thin. Giver your lids time to heal. If you still have continued issues with loose skin, you may want to try laser resurfacing, acid peels or a simple pinch skin excision. However, it may be impossible to get rid of all of your excess skin without causing more problems - lid retraction. So, please be careful... more

David Shafer, MD
New York Plastic Surgeon

Lots

Without photos/exam, this is just a primer on what you can do. First, the skin will tend to tighten for about a year or so after the surgery. Failing that, other peels may help, Coblation, various lasers. The more aggressive the treatment however, the greater the risk of complications of lower lid disfunction. Proceed with caution, and ask questions.

Scott E. Kasden, MD
Dallas Plastic Surgeon

Active FX is a good option for tightening eyelid skin

CO2 laser such as Active FX can be beneficial in further tightening loose skin on your upper and lower lids. It will be important to coordinate the timing of it with the other procedures you already had, to minimize the risks. Active FX can be done on upper and lower lids. Micridermabrasion might not be the best procedure for the delicate eyelid skin tissues and might damage it further and even compromise your vision. so I would recommend staying away from it.

Stella Desyatnikova, MD
Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

Consider laser resurfacing for wrinkly skin after Blepharoplasty

In addition to chemical peels, another alternative exists in laser resurfacing. The current range of laser choices minimizes downtime and provides a very predictable healing scenario. This is by building collagen along the treated area. Sometimes several treatments are necessary and would be typically separated by a month or more.

Michael A. Marschall, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Laser Blepharoplasty helps tighten skin

15 years ago, I put down the scalpel blade for the carbon dioxide (CO2) laser. The beauty of this laser for eyelid surgery is that it can be used to sculpt the fatty tissue of the delicate eyelid area. The additional benefit is that it can be used simultaneously to tighten the skin without an excision. NO SCAR, NO LOWER EYELID INCISION, NO SCALPEL! Although you have already had eyelid surgery you can still benefit from CO2 laser resurfacing of the eyelid skin. This will help to tighten the... more

Mark Berkowitz, MD
Sterling Heights Oculoplastic Surgeon

Laser skin resurfacing

One of the great things about laser skin reusurfacing is that it works wonders on the eyelid skin. There are a number of options from CO2 to Erbium to some of the newer Fractional lasers. I would find a plastic surgeon who has extensive expereince with lasers and is very comfortable working on the eyelids.

Robert M. Jensen, MD
Medford Plastic Surgeon

Different types of peels

Depending on what type of peel you had, there are a variety of peels that affect wrinkled skin to varying degrees. A light peel, such a glycolic acid, might do very little while a deeper peel with the old-fashioned phenol or a CO2 laser ight be very effective. Ask you surgeon about the options of other peels.