I’m worried about uneven eyes, but I don’t want surgery on both eyes!! Is it possible to operate on only one eye!?

Hello.

This is EH Ahn A Eye Plastic Surgery.

Among the many reasons people look into double eyelid surgery, some want to correct asymmetry caused by uneven eyes. In those cases, one of the questions that often comes up is whether it’s possible to operate only on the eye they don’t like, without doing surgery on the eye that already looks large and clear.

In fact, many of the people who come to our clinic for consultations ask whether it’s possible to have surgery on only one eye because they don’t want surgery on both eyes.

To give you the answer first: yes, surgery on only one eye is possible!!

In the case of uneven eyes, if the difference is very slight, it can actually be one of the features that looks charming. But because asymmetry can make the impression look harsh or give a negative image, many people decide on eye plastic surgery to improve their appearance into a more pleasant impression.

First, let’s look at the types of uneven eyes.

The types of uneven eyes can be broadly divided into unevenness caused by double eyelid surgery and cases where surgery was not done, but the asymmetry is due to congenital factors, lifestyle habits, accidents, and so on.

Uneven eyes without surgery

(cases where no surgery was done)

When only one side has a sunken eye

When the double eyelid height is different

When the strength of eyelid opening is different _ when the strength of eyelid opening differs from birth

Some people say, “I didn’t have a double eyelid when I was young, but as time passed I got one.”

In such cases, to be precise, it is not a double eyelid; rather, it is a wrinkle formed as the skin sags with aging and the fat above the eye becomes sunken.

Because of that, if aging progresses differently on each side or if the double eyelids themselves are different, the eyes can also appear uneven.

Uneven eyes caused by eye plastic surgery

When the double eyelid heights are different

When the double eyelid line has loosened

When there is a scar or lingering swelling on one side

As you can see, there are many different causes of uneven eyes, so it is most important to make a careful plan through thorough consultation.

In eye plastic surgery, the principle is to do both eyes together. The reason is that anesthesia is used during double eyelid surgery, and if only one eye is operated on, anesthesia is applied only to that side, so the medication effect goes only to one side. In that case, surgery has to be performed while only one side is swollen. It would be very difficult to achieve symmetry between the two eyes in such a situation.

That is why, during consultations, people are often told that surgery on only one eye is not possible. In our clinic, however, we have accumulated expertise through many years of specializing in eye surgery and handling a wide range of cases, so even if we operate on only one eye, we can match the symmetry of both eyes. For that reason, we comfortably perform surgery on only one eye.

Let us introduce some uneven-eye cases.

Uneven eyes due to non-surgical causes; after double eyelid surgery, the skin sagged with aging and asymmetry returned, leading to a decision for reoperation

Male in his late 30s _ Left side only, incision revision surgery

This male patient in his late 30s had a normal right eye, but the outer corner of the left eye was pointing downward and the double eyelid was no longer visible, making the eyes look uneven.

In this patient’s case, a traffic accident caused one side to sag, which made the eyes appear asymmetrical.

He wanted surgery on only one side from the beginning, and when I examined his eye condition during the consultation, his eyelid-opening strength was normal and he liked the shape of his eyes. So rather than operating on both sides, I performed surgery on only one eye to match the patient’s needs.

These are the before-and-after photos taken five months after surgery. The procedure was done with an incision, and once symmetry between both eyes was achieved, the patient was very satisfied.

He decided on revision surgery because double folds developed after a previous operation

Woman in her mid-40s _ Left side only, incision eyelid correction revision surgery

As you can see in the photo, it is obvious at a glance that the eyes are uneven, and she had an impression of looking tired. Since the eyes are one of the features that greatly affect first impressions, even though she was not actually tired, people around her kept telling her that she looked tired, which caused her stress and led her to decide on surgery.

She liked the double eyelid height and shape of the eye that did not develop double folds, and wanted the same symmetry with surgery on only one side. She visited other clinics, but none said they could do revision surgery on only one side, so she simply lived with it until she underwent revision surgery at our clinic seven years later.

Because double folds had formed, and the eyelid-opening strength was weak, the upper eyelid did not open fully and partly covered the black pupil, which could create a sleepy-looking image. So through eyelid correction, we strengthened the eyelid-opening force to help the black pupil appear within a normal range.

Looking at the before and after results, you can see that the two sides became symmetrical. If you have surgery on only one eye with an experienced medical team, it is possible to achieve symmetry. And as the eyelid-opening strength became stronger, the sleepy-looking impression disappeared, so the patient was very satisfied.

This was a person who wanted to correct asymmetry because the original double eyelid heights were different.

Woman in her mid-30s _ Left side only, first non-incision surgery

She already had double eyelids, but the heights were different, making her eyes look uneven.

No one has perfectly symmetrical features, but depending on the degree of asymmetry, it can become a complex. In her case, the right double eyelid was an in-out line, while the left was an in-line and looked like a hidden double eyelid, so she wanted it adjusted to an in-out line.

She wanted the left eye to be changed to match the right eye’s in-out line, and since the right side already had her original double eyelid and she did not want surgery on that side, she asked to have only the left eye done. So we performed non-incision surgery on only one eye to restore symmetry.

These before-and-after photos show the result of doing only the left side with a non-incision method. One month after surgery, there was still some minor swelling, so it may look a bit unnatural. However, as time passes and the swelling goes down, the two eyes become symmetrical and the appearance becomes more natural.

They wanted improvement for asymmetry caused by different double eyelid line heights after double eyelid surgery and a sausage-like appearance

Woman in her early 30s _ Bilateral incision eyelid correction revision surgery

This patient underwent surgery at our clinic to improve dissatisfaction caused by a previous operation.

The left eye fixation was somewhat strong, and the double eyelid line was formed higher than the right eye. In the case of the right eye as well, the line was high, so the overall look appeared artificial. She wanted a more natural change while achieving symmetry between both eyes.

We designed it naturally with an in-out line and performed incision surgery and eyelid correction to lower the line and restore symmetry.

Although she was born with weak eyelid-opening strength, even after eye plastic surgery her eyes did not open clearly, so they still looked asymmetrical and she decided to undergo revision surgery

Woman in her mid-30s _ Bilateral incision eyelid correction revision surgery

This patient was someone who had originally had difficulty opening the right eye from birth. After she had surgery once and wanted the result she had hoped for, we learned during consultation that she had always had trouble opening the right eye properly. Since surgery had already been done once, the only way to accurately determine the part that had been underdeveloped from birth is to open the eye during surgery. The levator muscle or fascia can be assessed by looking at its color.

Because these details cannot be confirmed during consultation, we judge what can improve based on our experience and predict the result after surgery. That is why we explain in advance which parts may change and which parts may remain limited, which seems to help patients proceed with confidence.

After surgery, the two sides became symmetrical, and in the case of the right eye, the black pupil was visible without being covered, so the overall impression changed to a more positive one. She was very satisfied with the result.

Director Park Byung-ho PR

I’m known for making things look natural!!

I’m not a god, but I still work hard to make the surgery as close to perfect as possible.

There are more cases than you might think where only one side is done instead of both sides to correct uneven eyes.

Then is surgery on only one eye cheaper than surgery on both eyes?

At our clinic, the cost is set lower than having both sides done.

Although operating on only one side can be more difficult than operating on both sides, so the price could be set higher, we charge less than surgery on both eyes because it takes less time than operating on both eyes. That said, it is not half the price.

When you decide on surgery and come in for a consultation, I think the worst thing is wishful thinking.

I believe it is right to say clearly when something cannot be done, so if you visit our clinic, you do not need to worry about unnecessary treatment.

It would be great to get a satisfying result from the first surgery, but if that does not happen, revision surgery inevitably becomes something to consider. To achieve a good result, it is far more important who performs the surgery and how it is done.

One thing many people misunderstand is that they think surgery will make both sides perfectly symmetrical.

When looking at a face, the eyebrow positions are different, the bone structure is different, the degree of eye protrusion is different, and the skin thickness is different. So even if surgery is performed to match both sides, there will still be some degree of difference, but we do our best to make them as symmetrical as possible.

For example, if the right cheekbone is higher, the right eye may appear higher than the left eye overall. Even if customized design and surgery methods are used with that in mind, it will not become perfectly symmetrical like a decal or a copied image.

I hope this post was helpful for those who want to improve asymmetry caused by uneven eyes. Detailed information about whether only one eye can be treated or both eyes need to be operated on can be confirmed through a consultation.