3 months post op, I'm still swollen. Is this normal? (photos)

Question

I'm a little over 3 months post op. I notice my eyes are uneven. It didn't bother me before. And I really like them now then before but are my eyes still swollen? My left eyelid is higher then my right. My scar on my left eye is almost gone. But you notice how it's higher incision then my right? My right eye scar is bumpy ish. I heard that once the scars are gone then the swelling is gone, is that true? I need some reassurance.

Donald B. Yoo, MD, FACS · Answer

The appearance and height of your creases will continue to change as your eyelids heal and the swelling resolves over the course of this year.  There may be a mild amount of ptosis in your left upper lid, meaning it hangs slightly lower than the right and causing the crease on the left to appear higher.  Symmetry will likely improve as you heal, but follow up closely with your surgeon to ensure the best results.

Jessica Lattman, MD · Answer

Hello.  These is still some residual swelling.  I would give yourself some more time.  Theo two sides always heal differently.  One slower than the other.  So I would give it a few more months.

Suzanne Kim Doud Galli, MD, PhD, FACS · Answer

There appears to be some asymmetry and some swelling. Give yourself a little more time for the swelling to resolve. You can discuss your concerns with your surgeons.

Amiya Prasad, MD - Account Suspended · Answer

Surgical healing involves the areas where the surgeon has
done surgery whether it’s a simple laceration closure or a more complex
surgery. This is a timeframe which can take up to a year. Incision healing and
swelling are not correlated. Temporary swelling is caused by a variety of reasons.
One part of the basis of swelling is reactive swelling or the swelling after
the surgery.  Other issues related to
swelling have to do with fluid stasis. In other words, there’s fluid just
sticking around in the circulation or in the lymphatic system.

Wound remodeling is a dynamic process that takes place in the
cellular level. The results of any surgery can take as long as a year for any
patient to fully appreciate it. Fortunately, this doesn’t mean that patients
can’t look good after the surgery. In our practice, when we do Asian eyelid
surgery, most of our patients get back to work in a week and most of them can
look pretty good within a month. There’s a mild degree of swelling which we
check at 3 months, 6 months or 12 months. We actually tried to develop a
process to minimize the active swelling in procedures such as Asian eyelid
surgery using the non-incisional method or the excisional method. We also do more
complex procedures such as ptosis surgery where we work on the levator muscle and
advance it, which is a longer procedure. In these procedures, we still get our
patients to look pretty good faster. Again, the swelling and other factors can
take a little time.

I think that communicating with your surgeon who you must
have chosen based on your research on the level of their experience will be
able to guide you on what to expect. At 3 months, it is still a little
premature to anticipate or to project that this is the appearance you’ll have
beyond a year. At the same time, keep an open communication line with your
surgeon so that you can keep being evaluated and examined and then you can
understand where you’re heading. I hope that was helpful, I wish you the best
of luck, and thank you for your question.

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3 months post op, I'm still swollen. Is this normal? (photos)

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