If the eyes are the windows to your soul,then the eyelids are the harbinger of aging. People often look directly into one’s eyes to evaluate their emotional state and the eyelids frame the window. It is not surprising that a patient’s eyes are often the first part of the face to reveal signs of aging. Excessive upper eyelid skin causing redundant folds and lower eyelid fat pockets and dark circles are common initial signs of an aging face. When the signs of aging start to present, most people try to hold back time and aging with various noninvasive skin treatments such as Botox, fillers, and skin care products.
While these treatments can help improve the appearance of the eye, they still do not treat the underlying cause. Several external factors can also affect the eyelids and the appearance of the eyes. Sun exposure, stress, sleep deprivation, smoking, and alcohol consumption and all have negative effects on the surrounding structures of the eye. These factors can accelerate the appearance of aging eyelids where conservative treatments can’t adequately improve the eye’s appearance. In addition, aging eyelids can cause visual field narrowing as well as other functional problems. Surgical correction of eyelid defects and deformities, caused by age and other external factors can be performed to restore the youthful appearance to eyes and dramatically improve one’s outlook on the future.
Surgical correction or blepharoplasty resolves both cosmetic and functional problems and is one of the most common procedures performed in plastic surgery. Blepharoplasty improves a patient’s eyelid function and self-esteem, as one patient described it, “reconstruction for the soul”. Don’t let the curtain of aging keep you from seeing and enjoying your future.
For more information, contact Dr. Rose at his office in Corpus Christi at (361) 651-1200.