Did you know that we are reflexively wired to look into each other’s eyes?  The first thing you look at when you meet someone for the first time, or when you see someone that is familiar to you, is their eyes.  Can you trust them?  Are they attracted to you?  Afraid?  Tired?  Your eyes reveal your age —they also reveal whether you had enough sleep or had one too many glasses of wine last night.  Whether you are just beginning to see changes associated with aging, or the wrinkles that greet you in the mirror belong on a bulldog, options abound to improving the appearance of your eyes.

According to Allan Wulc M.D., Board Certified Ophthalmologist and Facial Cosmetic & Plastic Surgeon at Cirillo Cosmetic in Rosemont, “If you begin to address aging eyes in your 30s, there are excellent options available to delay cosmetic eyelid surgery.”  The first option involves the institution of aggressive skin care with medical grade creams to improve the texture and quality of the skin.  .

When aging catches up, the next treatment options are the use of Botox®/Dysport® and fillers around the eyes.  Botox®/Dysport® improves the fine lines, and lifts the brows.  Fillers lift and shape the brow, and hide the hollows beneath the eyes.  Skin tightening and resurfacing comes from the use of a fractionated laser.  This “blepharoplasty bypass” combination therapy postpones the need for cosmetic eyelid surgery, in some patients for years, and in some cases, indefinitely.   The bypass procedure results can last for 14 months, and in some cases, longer.  Dr. Wulc believes, “if I can keep a patient out of the operating room by doing the bleph bypass, I will.”

When the bypass treatments no longer are as effective due to the delayed but persistent effects of aging, cosmetic eyelid surgery, or blepharoplasty, is the natural option.  “When it’s time, patients tell me,” says Dr. Wulc.   We have fought the fight together, and they are eager to undergo cosmetic eyelid surgery because it’s an amazing WOW phenomenon—the results are instantaneous.

Cosmetic eyelid surgery is straightforward and only takes about an hour.  Skin and fat are removed under light sedation with small, hidden incisions.  Dr. Wulc uses a technique to tighten loose muscles under the eyelids, and the skin tightening laser is used again.  Recovery is usually painless, and patients are generally back to work in four days with minimal bruising.

under-eye lid treatments
Before and after under-eye treatment

The surgery is one of the most commonly performed cosmetic surgeries. The goal is to look rested and natural, so your eyes don’t reveal your age and nobody can guess what you did the night before!

Cosmetic Eyelid Surgery and other eye rejuvenation regimen options are available locally at Cirillo Cosmetic Dermatology Spa. Our medical dermatology practice, Bryn Mawr Skin & Cancer Institute, is conveniently located adjacent to our Spa. Our center represents the area’s largest, most-credentialed skin care and cosmetic surgery center, addressing all medical, surgical, pediatric, and cosmetic skin care needs. For more information, contact us at 610.525.5029 and 610.525.5028.

Victoria A. Cirillo-Hyland