Does Eyelid Surgery Cause Fuzziness and Very Sensitive to Light?

Eyelid surgery may cause some blurry vision in the initial few days after surgery due to swelling, poor blinking, etc.  Discuss with your surgeon and/or discuss with an ophthalmologist or oculoplastic specialist.

Sensitivity to light after eyelid surgery is a very alarming sign.  It requires prompt attention by a board certified ophthalmologist.  The reason is that it represents inflammation inside the eye and it is not normal after eyelid surgery.  Taken together with blurred vision, it suggest that you may have a corneal ulcer, corneal inflammation, or iritis.  These conditions need to be assessed and actively treated.  Unless your surgeon is a board certified ophthalmologist and an oculoplastic surgeon, he or she lacks the training, skills, experience, and equipment to assess, examine, and diagnose what is going on.  Call your surgeon immediately and get a referral to an ophthalmologist or see your own ophthalmologist.

 

Blurry vision (that comes and goes) and sensitivity to light are signs of dry eyes, a common problem immediately after eyelid surgery. Try using over-the-counter artificial tears such as Genteal gel several times a day. If this doesnt help you should see an eye doctor to check your corneas and make sure your eyes are closing completely with each blink. 

Done properly, upper or lower eyelid surgery should not cause long term vision fuzziness or light sensitivity.  Some of these symptoms may be present for a few days after surgery but should quickly resolve.  These symptoms most commonly are caused by some form of injury to the covering of the eyeball, ( conjunctiva or cornea ) and will usually resolve over time if correctly treated.  A visit back to your plastic surgeon should be first then perhaps a visit to an opthalmologist for a complete eye exam.

It's very common to have fuzzy vision during the first week or two following blepharoplasty.  This is because ointments are commonly used around and in the eye which can blur the vision and because the intial swelling and tightening around the eye can actually cause some physical distortion of the cornea (the clear dome over the colored part of your eye).  These effects are almost always temporary.  If any blurring lasts longer than a month, you should have your vision checked to see if your refraction or astigmatism has changed.

Sensitivity to light is less common. This can be caused by dryness or even a superficial injury to the cornea, possibly even caused by an infectious agent.  Since I don't know how long ago you had surgery or how your symptoms have progressed, I would suggest you see an optometrist or an ophthalmologist to get a slit lamp examination of the surface of your cornea if this is not improving.