Brow Lift vs Upper Blepharoplasty: Which Surgery Is Better for My Eyes? (Explained by a Plastic Surgery Specialist)

Brow Lift vs Upper Blepharoplasty: Which Surgery Is Better for My Eyes?

(Explained by a Plastic Surgery Specialist)

Hello, this is Obje Plastic Surgery.

There are people who are often told by those around them, “Did you not sleep well?” or “Are you tired?” If you hear that you look tired even when you actually feel completely fine, it may be worth checking whether your eyelids have started to droop.

The skin around the eyes is thinner than other areas of the face, so it can sag relatively easily. The problem is that when the upper eyelid skin droops, it can cover the pupils and create an overall sleepy, tired-looking impression.

In fact, among the patients who visit Obje Plastic Surgery, many say they are worried about their sleepy-looking eyes. At first, they may not notice the sagging, and then gradually come to realize it after hearing from people around them that they look tired.

Once they become aware of drooping eyelids, many people look for ways to improve their sleepy-looking eyes and assume that upper blepharoplasty is the solution. That is because upper blepharoplasty is the representative surgery for improving the upper eyelids.

Many patients who visit Obje also come thinking about upper blepharoplasty, but it is not the only way to improve eyes that look sleepy and tired.

A brow lift can also improve a tired-looking impression.

Today’s post will explain in detail the difference between upper blepharoplasty and a brow lift for improving a sleepy-looking appearance, and which surgery is recommended for which type of person.

Drooping eyelids that look sleepy

Is upper blepharoplasty always the answer?

Among patients in their 50s and 60s, there are some who say that after having upper blepharoplasty to improve sleepy-looking eyes, they feel it looks even more awkward and obviously surgical.

There are several reasons why upper blepharoplasty can feel awkward afterward, but the biggest reason is that thick skin and thin skin do not connect naturally.

Upper blepharoplasty is a double-eyelid surgery performed after middle age. It is a procedure that removes some of the sagging skin and creates a beautiful double-eyelid line to produce a more defined eye shape.

The skin of the eyelid is thicker near the eyebrow and becomes thinner as it goes down toward the eyelashes. In upper blepharoplasty, the sagging skin in the middle of the eyelid is removed to create a double eyelid. In other words, the medium-thickness skin that used to connect the thick and thin skin disappears. As the thick skin near the eyebrow meets the thin skin near the eyelashes, the fold can look awkward and unnatural.

This can look even more awkward at the suture line, especially for people with thick skin.

So how should people with thick skin improve drooping, sagging eyelids?

At Obje, we recommend a brow lift rather than upper blepharoplasty for people with thick skin.

A brow lift removes the sagging skin from underneath the eyebrow while preserving the original eyelid skin.

After making an incision along the line just below the eyebrow and removing a certain amount of sagging skin, the medium-thickness skin is not lost, allowing for a natural eyelid improvement without awkwardness.

Which surgery suits my eyes?

Upper blepharoplasty vs. brow lift

Then is a brow lift always the more natural and better surgery?

That is not necessarily true either.

Because the thickness of the eyelid skin, the degree of sagging, and the aesthetic goals differ from patient to patient, it is best to choose a surgical method accordingly.

At Obje Plastic Surgery, when patients visit because they are concerned about a sleepy-looking appearance caused by drooping eyelids, we first carefully examine the condition of the eyelids.

If the eyelid skin is thin and there is little fat around the eyes, upper blepharoplasty is recommended rather than a brow lift.

When eyelid skin is thin, fine wrinkles can form more easily. For people with thin eyelid skin, if a brow lift removes thicker skin, the thin skin may shift upward and fine wrinkles may become more noticeable. Hollowing around the eyes can also become more prominent.

That is why upper blepharoplasty is recommended for people with thin eyelid skin and little fat. It is also recommended for those who want to improve eyelid sagging while creating a double eyelid.

On the other hand, a brow lift is recommended for people with thick eyelid skin and a larger amount of fat. When the eyelid skin is thick, as mentioned earlier, upper blepharoplasty can make the suture area look bulky and may make the eyes appear awkward or even harsh. In such cases, a brow lift, which involves making an incision below the eyebrow, removing some of the excess skin, and then suturing it closed, can improve sagging eyelids more naturally.

In addition, a brow lift can improve drooping eyelids while preserving the natural eye shape without creating a double eyelid. For this reason, it is also recommended for people who want to improve only the sagging eyelid without making a double eyelid.

At Obje Plastic Surgery, we recommend the surgical method that best suits each patient’s eyes through consultation with a board-certified plastic surgeon. If you are deciding between upper blepharoplasty and a brow lift, please visit us and make your decision after an accurate consultation with a board-certified plastic surgeon. We will briefly summarize the differences between upper blepharoplasty and a brow lift below, so please take another look!

	Upper blepharoplasty	Brow lift
Incision site	Double-eyelid line	Below the eyebrow
Presence of double eyelid	A double eyelid is created	Preserves the natural eye shape
Recommended for	People with thin skinPeople who want a double eyelidPeople with little fat around the eyes	People with thick skinPeople who want to preserve their original eye shapePeople with a lot of fat around the eyes

Doesn’t a brow lift leave a noticeable scar?

Because a brow lift involves making an incision in the skin below the eyebrow, many people worry that the scar will be very visible.

In a brow lift, the incision is made along the line just beneath the eyebrow. Since this area follows the direction of the eyebrow hairs, once healing is complete the scar is hidden by the eyebrow and is not very noticeable. If you fill in your eyebrows, it becomes even less visible.

However, for people with very light eyebrows, the scar may not be well covered after a brow lift and may be a concern. If the scar is bothersome because your eyebrows are sparse, you can cover it by filling in your eyebrows after recovery, or if you do not want to draw them in every time, you can cover it with eyebrow tattooing. So there is no need to worry too much about the scar after a brow lift.

There is one additional point I would like to mention.

A brow lift improves sagging only directly below the eyebrow. Some people hope that a brow lift will also improve sagging and wrinkles around the eyes.

Because a brow lift makes an incision just below the eyebrow, improvement of sagging skin is limited to within the eyebrow area. Crow’s feet around the eyes or wrinkles on the bridge of the nose that extend beyond the eyebrow area are difficult to improve at the same time.

If you want to improve crow’s feet or bridge-of-the-nose wrinkles all at once, an forehead lift may be a better option than a brow lift. A forehead lift raises the sagging forehead and eyebrows, improving not only drooping eyelids but also crow’s feet and bridge-of-the-nose wrinkles at the same time.

However, since a precise diagnosis is needed to determine which surgery is best for each patient’s concerns, it is advisable to visit Obje Plastic Surgery and make a careful decision after consultation with Director Shin Jong-in.

Director Shin Jong-in is well known for anti-aging plastic surgery that reverses the signs of aging in middle age. In particular, he has extensive experience in middle-aged eye surgery, including lower blepharoplasty, upper blepharoplasty, and brow lifts. In addition, he also performs delicate endoscopic forehead lifts to turn back time. If you are curious about the difference between Obje’s brow lift and forehead lift, there is a separate detailed post, so please check the post below if you are interested.

Director Shin Jong-in of Obje Plastic Surgery is known as a master of middle-aged eye surgery, to the point that people considering such procedures have likely heard his name at least once. This may be because of the extensive clinical experience he has accumulated through years of continuous research on middle-aged eye surgery.

For more than 20 years, Director Shin Jong-in has researched how to make patients’ eyes look more lively and refreshed. Perhaps that sincerity has reached patients, because many people seek out Director Shin Jong-in. To repay that trust, he carefully observes the eye shape of every patient who visits. Even if someone comes in thinking about upper blepharoplasty, if a brow lift is more suitable for the patient’s eye condition, he explains the reason in detail and recommends a brow lift. The same applies in the opposite case as well.

Procedures such as upper blepharoplasty and brow lifts are not only for improving signs of aging, but also for aesthetic purposes. In particular, the eyes are a highly visible part of the face and play an important role in first impressions, so it is important to entrust them to a highly skilled plastic surgery clinic and a trustworthy board-certified plastic surgeon.

Director Shin Jong-in at Obje Plastic Surgery recommends the surgical method that he truly believes is necessary for each patient, so you can undergo the procedure with confidence.

If drooping, sagging eyelids have always been a concern because they make your eyes look sleepy, please consider a consultation with Director Shin Jong-in at Obje Plastic Surgery.

This has been Obje Plastic Surgery.

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• This post is medical information prepared by Obje Plastic Surgery Clinic in compliance with the Medical Advertising Act.

• Results may vary from person to person, and side effects may occur.

We strongly recommend that you have a thorough consultation with a medical professional in advance before deciding on any procedure.