What is the Healing Time for Endoscopic Brow Ptosis Repair and Blepharoplasty?

Endoscopic browlift and Blepharoplasty are great procedures to achieve a more youthful appearance with not much down time.  After the procedure, it is normal to have some swelling, bruising and some minimal pain that will diminish in about 7-10 days.  Many patients, who don't have a labor intensive job, will return to work in a week.  Being that you do work on a computer it may be recommened that you use artificial tears to help with dryness throughout the day.  I would make an appointment with your plastic surgeon to discuss your recovery. 

As you can imagine there is some variation in the degree of bruising, swelling, and discomfort that different patients will have after similar procedures. 

Most patients will find that most of the bruising and swelling has passed by about 10 days.  I generally recommend a minimum of 1 week off work for those who have jobs that are not physically demanding.  Occasionally, patients choose 2 weeks off in this setting.

Good luck with your surgery!

Mark Lucarelli, MD, FACS

Madison, WI

Typically for most individuals with a desk job 10 days is a good rule of thumb.  That does not mean that you will be perfect at 10 days.  It means that you can be a work and will have a degree of swelling and minimal bruising at that point.  I do strongly recommend that you ask your surgeon this very question and see what they say.

The issue about when to return to work after any forehead or eyelid lift procedure is more of a social question than a functional one. It not only depends on how much swelling and bruising one gets but what one's tolerance is for being seen in public with visible signs of surgery. If one needs to await for complete swelling and bruising resolution, it could be two weeks and possibly closer to three weeks. But if one can accept some eyelid swelling and a little bruising under the eyes, one could return to work is  as little as one week after surgery. 

The healing time for each individual is variable but in general I tell my patients 10days to two weeks before going back. Some go back as early as one week. You may experience some eye fatigue so adjust your work schedule accordingly. Hope this helps.

You should plan on one week with significant bruising and swelling and some discomfort. Based on your job description, you probably could go back to work after one week. Many patients will take a second week off, so that most of the swelling and bruising has resolved.