• Video
  • Are Scars Going to Be Visible After Eyelid Surgery?
{{ showTranscript ? 'HIDE' : 'SHOW' }} TRANSCRIPT
A lot of what I do is eyelid surgery, and there are common questions that I hear. One of the most common things I hear from patients either before or after a procedure is are scars going to be visible after my eyelid surgery, or blepharoplasty.

Every incision we make tends to heal by a scar, and through meticulous technique we try to minimize any scarring if possible. The scars on the eyelids tend to be very, very fine when done well. It's a really nice part of the body to have surgery on, the reason being because that skin is so fine it generally heals with an imperceptible scar.

The upper eyelid, the scar should fall right where the eyes open and close, and unless you're really looking for it I don't think you should be able to see it. People that are darkly pigmented in terms of being ethnic, that scar tends to take a little bit longer to settle down and be imperceptible. People with very fine skin and fair eyes, their scars look great almost immediately.

Lower eyelids, oftentimes I can do the blepharoplasty by performing removal of any puffiness from the inside of the eyelid so there's not an external scar. Any extra skin I can take care of with some laser resurfacing, and any irregularities in terms of hollowness I can take care of by injecting some of your own fat into the area to make that much smoother.

In a certain population, generally a little bit older, I need to make an incision right at the eyelashes, and what I do is almost like removing the wrinkles from a tablecloth. I'll remove that extra skin. Those incisions heal so beautifully that people are always amazed that people can't even tell that I've been there. That incision is right at the eyelashes.

There are things that we do afterwards, scar creams and things like that. Very rarely do I need to revise a scar from a blepharoplasty.
Patience along with communication, I think, is the best route here.

To answer your question when people ask about scars, they really should be imperceptible.

Are Scars Going to Be Visible After Eyelid Surgery?

Dr. Daniel Shapiro notes than while each surgical procedure does result in a scar, certain procedures allow for imperceptible scars.