Ptosis with Drooping Eyelids: "Treatment Differs by Type"

If someone usually looks sleepy or has drooping eyelids, they are often suspected of having 'ptosis.'

This refers to a condition in which the upper eyelid droops downward because the muscle that lifts it has become weak. If the drooping is severe or left untreated, there is a possibility of secondary problems such as uneven eyes, double eyelid asymmetry, and sunken eyelids. If you try to force your eyes open using the forehead muscles, wrinkles may form on the forehead, and in severe cases, headaches may occur.

Ptosis is divided into congenital and acquired types. In congenital ptosis, the levator palpebrae superioris muscle often has poor development and is therefore weak. Acquired ptosis is caused by aging, injury-related damage and weakening of the upper eyelid lifting muscle, nerve disorders, systemic diseases, and other factors.

That is not all. Ptosis is also classified into true ptosis and pseudoptosis. First, 'pseudoptosis' can be understood literally as 'false ptosis.' It has symptoms similar to true ptosis because the eyes are opened by using the forehead muscles and the visible area of the eyeball is small.

However, there are cases where the eyelid skin simply sags and there is a lot of fat, making it look like ptosis, while the muscle strength used to open the eyes is normal.

Choi Seung-hyeop, director of WINK Plastic Surgery, explained, "If it is pseudoptosis, a standard double eyelid surgery, rather than the eye-opening correction commonly used for treatment, can improve the tight, heavy-looking impression to some extent. However, if it is true ptosis, corrective surgery is necessary, and depending on the situation, a non-incisional or incisional method may be applied."

Non-incisional eye-opening correction can be considered when the degree of ptosis is relatively mild, the eyelids are thin, and skin sagging is less pronounced. Incisional eye-opening correction can be considered when the degree of ptosis is severe and there is a lot of eyelid fat and skin sagging.

Director Choi said, "Because skin sagging, muscle strength, fat volume, and the size or protrusion of the eyeball differ from person to person, a systematic surgical plan suited to the patient's condition must be established. Rather than choosing a hospital that focuses only on low prices or aggressively recommends unnecessary surgery, it is safer and more likely to lead to satisfying aesthetic and functional results to choose a place that accurately analyzes the patient's condition and suggests only the surgery that is truly needed."

<World Biz reporter Jeong Hee-won happy1@segye.com>