Reviews you can trust, from real people like you.
How it works
- Our highly-trained Review Moderation team evaluates all reviews before they're published to ensure they're written by people like you and not a member of a doctor's office.
- This multi-step process takes up to 24 hours from review submission to publication.
- Doctors can't pay to have reviews removed or hidden.
- Reviews are only removed at the reviewer's request or if they violate our Terms of Service.
If you have questions or believe we should re-evaluate a published review, let us know.
Sort by:
*Treatment results may vary
At 52 years old, my eyes were drooping so bad that...
At 52 years old, my eyes were drooping so bad that I often would get comments about how tired I looked. My Irish heredity had a lot to contribute to this condition! I sought the advice of Dr. Geoffrey Kwitko, who was recommended to me by a friend who is in the medical profession.
Here is an account of my experience:
For my first appointment with Dr Kwitko, I informed him of my concerns - peripheral vision changes and extremely dry eyes. He had his staff give me a test in which I looked directly into a machine and would click on a button when I saw a flash of light - the light was all over the place - a tiny dot in a circular field of vision. I guess I failed the test enough to get the approval through the insurance company to have the "surgery." The Dr informed me that the insurance would only pay if he did it in a series of 4 surgeries. At one point, I asked Dr Kwitko exactly what he was going to do, to which he replied, "Look, you are getting blepharoplasty, ok?" I thought I was getting upper and lower eyelid surgery and was thrilled that it was covered under insurance (I feel really dumb that I did not speak up but that is hindsight!)
We scheduled the surgery for February - a series of 4 surgeries in two weeks - where Dr Kwitko would do the lower lids (right, left) and then upper (right, left ) (not sure if I have the exact order right, but the point is that it was 2 weeks of going to the hospital and healing did not begin until the last surgery - so, two weeks of time from work and at the end of that time, I looked as if I got hit by a bus) I took off an extra two weeks of time in order to heal and assist my elderly mother who lives out of state. I still do not know what procedure he performed on my lower lids, but it was not lower lid surgery. I believe it was a procedure to alleviate the dry eyes problem. (Like I said, Dr Kwitko answered me rudely when I questioned what procedure he was going to do on my eyes! ) Also, by requiring 4 separate surgeries, I was required to pay the deductible each time - this seems like a scam to me - but the money would have been well spent if the results were even acceptable.
When a person looks at herself in the mirror, it is really difficult to "see" yourself as others see you. Even as my eyes were swollen, my mother could tell they were asymmetrical. Her comment to me was that she didn't think I was going to be happy with the surgery. I did not see this right away because of the impossibility of "looking" at myself.
I proceeded to go to my follow up appointments. I did notice that my right eye lid's stitches were not healing as cleanly as my left eye. And on my left eye, there was a "left over" piece of skin - creating a skin bump that looked like Dr Kwitko did not evenly cut off the excess skin on that eyelid. When I mentioned this to him during a follow up, he replied that it was "scar tissue". So, now, I have an extra piece of skin on my left eye and if I close my right eye, you can see the stitch line. great, right?
After three months, apparently, the insurance did not cover any more follow up visits to the Dr. Seriously? They charged me and my insurance company thousands of dollars, and then expect me to pay $45 office visit each time to spend 5 seconds with the DR who tells me that I have scar tissue?? After the second office visit that was no longer covered by the original surgery "umbrella" , I did not schedule any more follow ups.
Oddly, by summer, I noticed a significant increase in the BAGS under my eyes! I looked older than when I began. When this first started appearing, once again, Dr Kwitko told me that I was wrong and it would be fine. This is when I realized that I did not have anything resembling a lower bleph. Dr Kwitko told me he could do it for $3000. I spent a significant time in denial over the course of this first year. Finally, in November, I sought a second opinion and that Dr agreed that my bags were causing me to look significantly older than my actual age. He recommended surgery. I asked if there were any alternatives and he said that while there were no guarantees, he could place filler under my eyes to reduce the bags. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesnt. It worked "ok"for me (a tremendous relief but this is an expensive solution to maintain - the filler costs about $1000 each time and does not last as long around the eye area as it does in other parts of the face.)
It took over a year for the swelling to go completely down and the final results of my UPPER eyelid surgery to settle in. My eyes - which I have always received compliments on - are totally asymmetrical. I now have a marked ptosis in my left eye. I have finally decided to seek help to this problem. I could kick myself for trying to save money and get the original surgery through insurance. It has caused me embarrassment and self-consciousness to the point of depression!
As an aside - during the time I was seeing Dr Kwitko, he moved into a brand new facility in an upscale location in South Tampa. Apparently, business is good for him.
I am thinking that I should go back to Kwitko, only to see what he has to say for himself. I could understand that this kind of procedure is different on everyone, so maybe he can offer advice and corrective procedure.
Here is an account of my experience:
For my first appointment with Dr Kwitko, I informed him of my concerns - peripheral vision changes and extremely dry eyes. He had his staff give me a test in which I looked directly into a machine and would click on a button when I saw a flash of light - the light was all over the place - a tiny dot in a circular field of vision. I guess I failed the test enough to get the approval through the insurance company to have the "surgery." The Dr informed me that the insurance would only pay if he did it in a series of 4 surgeries. At one point, I asked Dr Kwitko exactly what he was going to do, to which he replied, "Look, you are getting blepharoplasty, ok?" I thought I was getting upper and lower eyelid surgery and was thrilled that it was covered under insurance (I feel really dumb that I did not speak up but that is hindsight!)
We scheduled the surgery for February - a series of 4 surgeries in two weeks - where Dr Kwitko would do the lower lids (right, left) and then upper (right, left ) (not sure if I have the exact order right, but the point is that it was 2 weeks of going to the hospital and healing did not begin until the last surgery - so, two weeks of time from work and at the end of that time, I looked as if I got hit by a bus) I took off an extra two weeks of time in order to heal and assist my elderly mother who lives out of state. I still do not know what procedure he performed on my lower lids, but it was not lower lid surgery. I believe it was a procedure to alleviate the dry eyes problem. (Like I said, Dr Kwitko answered me rudely when I questioned what procedure he was going to do on my eyes! ) Also, by requiring 4 separate surgeries, I was required to pay the deductible each time - this seems like a scam to me - but the money would have been well spent if the results were even acceptable.
When a person looks at herself in the mirror, it is really difficult to "see" yourself as others see you. Even as my eyes were swollen, my mother could tell they were asymmetrical. Her comment to me was that she didn't think I was going to be happy with the surgery. I did not see this right away because of the impossibility of "looking" at myself.
I proceeded to go to my follow up appointments. I did notice that my right eye lid's stitches were not healing as cleanly as my left eye. And on my left eye, there was a "left over" piece of skin - creating a skin bump that looked like Dr Kwitko did not evenly cut off the excess skin on that eyelid. When I mentioned this to him during a follow up, he replied that it was "scar tissue". So, now, I have an extra piece of skin on my left eye and if I close my right eye, you can see the stitch line. great, right?
After three months, apparently, the insurance did not cover any more follow up visits to the Dr. Seriously? They charged me and my insurance company thousands of dollars, and then expect me to pay $45 office visit each time to spend 5 seconds with the DR who tells me that I have scar tissue?? After the second office visit that was no longer covered by the original surgery "umbrella" , I did not schedule any more follow ups.
Oddly, by summer, I noticed a significant increase in the BAGS under my eyes! I looked older than when I began. When this first started appearing, once again, Dr Kwitko told me that I was wrong and it would be fine. This is when I realized that I did not have anything resembling a lower bleph. Dr Kwitko told me he could do it for $3000. I spent a significant time in denial over the course of this first year. Finally, in November, I sought a second opinion and that Dr agreed that my bags were causing me to look significantly older than my actual age. He recommended surgery. I asked if there were any alternatives and he said that while there were no guarantees, he could place filler under my eyes to reduce the bags. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesnt. It worked "ok"for me (a tremendous relief but this is an expensive solution to maintain - the filler costs about $1000 each time and does not last as long around the eye area as it does in other parts of the face.)
It took over a year for the swelling to go completely down and the final results of my UPPER eyelid surgery to settle in. My eyes - which I have always received compliments on - are totally asymmetrical. I now have a marked ptosis in my left eye. I have finally decided to seek help to this problem. I could kick myself for trying to save money and get the original surgery through insurance. It has caused me embarrassment and self-consciousness to the point of depression!
As an aside - during the time I was seeing Dr Kwitko, he moved into a brand new facility in an upscale location in South Tampa. Apparently, business is good for him.
I am thinking that I should go back to Kwitko, only to see what he has to say for himself. I could understand that this kind of procedure is different on everyone, so maybe he can offer advice and corrective procedure.
Provider Review
Oculoplastic Surgeon, Board Certified in Ophthalmology
311 South MacDill Avenue , Tampa, Florida
As mentioned in my review above, Dr Kwitko's bedside manner was intimidating and dismissive. I blame myself for allowing this to not be addressed while under his care. I hope he has realized that he needs to be more communicative and re-assuring to his patients since I was a patient of his.