If drooping eyelids or sagging brows are affecting your vision or making you appear older than you feel, eyelid surgery may be the solution you’ve been looking for. Frantz Eye Care and Frantz Cosmetic Center specialize in a wide range of functional and cosmetic eyelid surgeries, including ptosis repair, brow lifts, upper blepharoplasty, and lower blepharoplasty.
Understanding the differences between these procedures and what happens during each surgery can help you make an informed decision about which treatment best addresses your specific concerns.
What Causes Drooping or Sagging Eyelids?
Before exploring what happens during each procedure, it’s important to understand that not all eyelid issues are the same. The appearance of drooping or sagging eyelids can result from different underlying causes, each requiring a specific surgical approach:
Ptosis
Ptosis occurs when the levator muscle, which lifts your eyelid, doesn’t function properly, causing the eyelid to droop over the eye. This is a functional issue with the muscle itself, not simply excess skin.
Dermatochalasis
Dermatochalasis refers to excess skin and fat around the eyelids that can make you look tired or older. This condition is addressed through blepharoplasty.
Brow Ptosis
Brow ptosis happens when the forehead and brow area sag, putting additional weight on the upper eyelids and creating the appearance of drooping lids.
Frantz EyeCare carefully evaluates each patient’s unique situation to determine which procedure or combination of procedures will achieve the best results.
What Happens During Ptosis Surgery?
Ptosis repair addresses the underlying muscle weakness that causes your eyelid to droop. During this procedure, your surgeon works to strengthen or reposition the levator muscle responsible for lifting your eyelid.
External Approach: The surgeon makes a small incision in the natural crease of your upper eyelid. This allows access to the levator muscle, which is then tightened with carefully placed stitches to restore proper eyelid elevation, and the skin incision is closed with fine sutures.
Internal Approach: The entire procedure is performed from underneath your eyelid. Your surgeon flips the eyelid and tightens the muscle from the inside, requiring no external skin incision.
The choice between these approaches depends on the severity of your ptosis and your individual anatomy. Surgery typically takes one to two hours, and you can return home the same day.
What Happens During Upper Blepharoplasty?
Upper blepharoplasty specifically addresses excess skin, muscle, and fat in the upper eyelids that can make you appear tired or interfere with your peripheral vision.
The procedure involves making a precise incision within the natural crease of your upper eyelid. This strategic placement ensures that any resulting scar will be hidden within the natural fold of your eyelid.
Through this incision, your surgeon removes or repositions excess fat deposits, tightens underlying muscles, and removes excess skin that contributes to the drooping appearance.
The incisions are then closed with fine sutures, which are typically removed after 14 days. The entire procedure usually takes one to two hours per eye.
What Happens During Lower Blepharoplasty?
Lower blepharoplasty targets the fat pads, excess skin, and muscle laxity that create bags under your eyes and contribute to a tired appearance:
Transconjunctival Approach: The surgeon makes an incision hidden inside your lower eyelid. This technique is ideal when only fat removal or repositioning is necessary, with no excess skin to be removed.
Transcutaneous Approach: An incision is made just below your lower lashes in the eye’s natural crease. This approach allows for the removal of both excess fat and skin.
Rather than simply removing fat, the goal is often to redistribute it to eliminate the depression between the eyelid fat and cheek fat, creating a smooth, youthful contour. The procedure concludes with fine, dissolving stitches that rejoin the skin for a more rested appearance.
What Happens During Brow Lift Surgery?
When drooping eyebrows contribute to the appearance of heavy eyelids, a brow lift can provide significant improvement. During a brow lift procedure, your surgeon repositions the forehead tissues, removes excess skin if necessary, and secures everything in an elevated position to create a more youthful, alert appearance.
Whether you’re dealing with functional vision problems or cosmetic concerns about your appearance, the experienced teams at Frantz EyeCare and Frantz Cosmetic Center are committed to helping you achieve natural-looking results that restore both function and confidence to your daily life.
Schedule your consultation at Frantz EyeCare in Fort Myers, FL, today!
