Blepharoplasty- laser lower blepharoplasty with ActiveFX Laser Peel-a revolutionary new minimally invasive eyelid lift
Traditional scalpel blepharoplasty involves cutting and removing skin and fat from the lower eyelid to remove excess skin and fat and to remove eyelid bags in an operation called eyelid plasty. While this plastic surgery operation does remove skin and fat, the scalpel technique also creates a scar on the lower eyelid and weakens the support of the lower eyelid and can result in the lower eyelid turning down into a sad eyed look also called an ectropion or “hound dog eyes.”
In addition, the scalpel blepharoplasty does nothing to address the skin aging changes of the lower eyelid such as wrinkles, crow’s feet, “crepiness”, brown spots and other superficial skin aging changes. Also, dark circles cannot be removed unless a special technique called arcus marginalis release with fat repositioning is done.
A newer more modern technique called the transconjunctival blepharoplasty avoids the eyelid skin incision by making the incision on the inside pink portion of the lower eyelid, called the conjunctiva with a laser.
The transconjunctival incision avoids a scar on the eyelid and avoids cutting through the eyelid muscle, thus the crucial lower eyelid support is not violated and the beautiful eyelid shape is preserved. This approach avoids the sad eyed look, ectropion, and hound dog eyes. The laser seals blood vessels as the incision is made thus there is less bleeding, less bruising and quicker recovery.
To correct the skin aging changes on the outside of the lower eyelid an exciting new laser technique called the ActiveFX Laser Peel is done to remove the eyelid wrinkles, brown spots and skin aging changes and create smooth fresh new lower eyelid skin. Unlike the older laser skin resurfacing techniques, the new ActiveFX Peel is a superficial peel, about 70 microns compared to 150-200 microns for the older laser resurfacing. The new ActiveFX Peel is done with the Lumenis® CO2 Lyte® laser which is especially designed to deliver a gentler laser peel to the eyelid skin. Wrinkles are removed, the skin is tightened, and the eyelid skin rejuvenated and recovery time from the peel is only 5-7 days, less than the recovery time from the blepharoplasty. This is a revolutionary improvement over the older laser resurfacing technique that left the eyelid red for 6-8 weeks and could cause an ectropian. It is still very important to check for eyelid laxity before any blepharoplasty by pulling down on the lower eyelid and making sure the eyelid snaps back against the eyeball quickly. If the eyelid is slow to snap back, the ligaments are lax and must be tightened before any lower eyelid surgery by using a technique called a canthoplasty or canthopexy.
The laser transconjunctival lower eyelid blepharoplasty with ActiveFX Laser Peel is a revolutionary new eyelid rejuvenation or eyelid lift technique which produces total eyelid rejuvenation with minimal down time, something that cannot be achieved with scalpel blepharoplasty alone. More importantly the sad eyed look or ectropion can be avoided. After the blepharoplasty has healed, Botox can be used to prevent the crows feet from recurring.
Contact me, or read Save Your Face for the latest information on new advances in facial and eyelid rejuvenation.