Cosmetic Asian Eyelid Surgery

Asian blepharoplasty, also called double eyelid surgery, is one of the most popular facial cosmetic surgeries in the West and Orient.  But contrary to common belief, it is not a way to westernize or hide one’s ethnicity as it cannot alter the fundamental shape of the eyes.

A diamond eye will remain its shape after double eyelidsurgery since the procedure’s only goal is to define the eye crease.  It may involve completing an incomplete fold, changing the height of the eyelids, or creating new ones. 

It is important to remember that the eyelids are found in less than half of the Chinese population, while about 10 percent of the inhabitants from the Far East and South East Asia have one of their eyes lacking with a crease.  This fact alone is enough to allay the concern of some patients who are afraid that they may lose their ethnic features.

In the US, many cosmetic plastic surgeons consider Asian eyelid surgery as one of the most challenging procedures as they have to avoid overdoing the changes which can lead to unnatural results.  Also, it requires a tremendous amount of training, skill, and experience to prevent complications and botched results which are commonly manifested by “squinty” eyes and inability to completely close the eyes.

Nowadays, Asian eyelid surgery comes in several techniques in order to create the most natural results possible.  For instance, some plastic surgeons insert tiny sutures inside the eyelid to make new creases or reposition the existing ones; to further define the folds, some patients will need a small amount of their skin or fat removed.

While making a new eye crease, some plastic surgeons prefer using scalpel while others favor laser, which is said to minimize bleeding and postsurgical swelling and bruising because the heat has the ability to cauterize the blood vessel and tissue.  Some doctors also claim that laser technology provides them with more precision than when using a surgical knife.

Because the Asian eyelid surgery is a more involved procedure and it requires deeper incision than the traditional blepharoplasty (in which the only goal is to remove the excess skin and fats around the aging eyes), patients should expect longer recovery and more postoperative bruising and swelling.

This cosmetic surgery typically costs between $3,000 and $5,000—this already includes the fees for the anesthesia, facility, and surgeon.  But one important thing to remember is that choosing experienced doctors, especially those operating in large cities where the demand for plasticsurgery is high, come with higher fees.