Eyelids & Ptosis

Eyelids can be affected in many ways. If only the skin is redundant, this is called dermatochalasis. Repair of redundant eyelid skin is called blepharoplasty. Blepharoplasty can be performed to remove redundant skin or to create an eyelid crease (such as in Asians, in persons who were not born with an eyelid crease, or those who suffered trauma). If the actual eyelid itself is too low, which occurs commonly with time, this is called ptosis. This is repaired by removing eyelid muscle tissue and reattaching the muscles. Eyelids can have other problems; for example, eyelids can turn in (entropion) or turn outwards (ectropion). These are repaired by excising and/or reattaching the appropriate muscles.