If You’re Considering Eye Lateral Canthoplasty Revision (feat. Timing of Reconstruction, Cost Spoilers), Be Sure to Check This Post!

Outer canthus

This refers to the outer corner of the eye, or the eye corner.

Most people know that the surgery that reshapes the outer canthus is called lateral canthoplasty. Lateral canthoplasty is a surgery that opens, widens, and expands the outer canthus. It can be said to be performed to make the eyes even bigger after double eyelid surgery, eye correction surgery, and epicanthoplasty have already made the eyes look larger.

Many Koreans do not have double eyelids and have small eyes. For such people, it is easy to become envious of those with large, bright-looking eyes and to develop a strong desire to enlarge their own eyes by any means. People who have experienced their eyes becoming bigger after double eyelid surgery, eye correction surgery, and epicanthoplasty often come to want even larger eyes through lateral canthoplasty.

But here’s the thing. With double eyelid surgery or epicanthoplasty, there is often little difference in appearance depending on the surgical method, but with lateral canthoplasty alone, the difference in appearance can be significant depending on the method, and there are also many differences in whether scarring occurs and in the degree of ectropion. In the case of double eyelid surgery, there is almost no difference in the resulting eyelid shape between buried and incision methods, but with lateral canthoplasty, the appearance changes depending on whether the inner conjunctiva is pulled out and the gray line of the eyelid is cut, or whether the eye corner is lowered.

The method that pulls out the inner conjunctiva and cuts the gray line is called simple lateral canthoplasty. In such cases, common side effects include ectropion at the outer corner of the eye and a deformed eye corner with exposed inner conjunctiva that looks as if there were tears of blood. From a distance, it may look like the eyes have become somewhat larger, but at close range while talking, the deformity of the eye corner is still clearly noticeable.

When attempting gray-line resection and lowering the outer corner in simple lateral canthoplasty, the gray line at the outer corner is cut away, and only the skin at the eye corner is pulled downward without repositioning the internal structures of the eye corner. As a result, ectropion occurs and the red conjunctiva inside the eye becomes even more everted and exposed in most cases.

Compared with simple lateral canthoplasty, the method of lowering the outer corner that offers better results can also cause problems depending on how protruding the eyes are and on the design. A C-shaped appearance or ectropion, where the inner red conjunctiva at the outer corner turns outward, may occur; conversely, entropion where the eyelashes turn inward can also occur. A C-shaped appearance commonly occurs in protruding eyes, and it is a deformity that develops over time as the outer corner gradually shortens inward because the eyelid length was extended as much as possible for fixation. In addition, ectropion at the outer corner can occur when the internal structures of the outer corner are not properly repositioned and the fixation is not done in the appropriate location.

Eye lateral canthoplasty revision is a surgery that correctly returns these outer-corner deformities to their proper position. It is not an extremely difficult surgery, but it is best performed by a doctor who has done many lateral canthoplasty procedures. I also want to emphasize that no matter how severe the outer-corner deformity looks, it is absolutely not a surgery that should cost more than 3 to 4 million KRW (there were actually clinics that charged more than 4 million KRW).

There are also cases where people regret having lower eyelid surgery just like they do with lateral canthoplasty and later seek revision. In some cases, the white of the eye becomes more exposed than expected, or revision is performed because entropion causes the eyelashes to poke the eye. As with lateral canthoplasty revision, lower eyelid revision does not necessarily require waiting a full 6 months; rather, the sooner it is done, the better the revision tends to work and the better the result.

In disease management, the best treatment is prevention. I think the same applies to eye revision surgery. The most important thing is not to undergo the lateral canthoplasty that would later require revision. It is best to have the procedure performed in a way that minimizes side effects as much as possible, and before cosmetic surgery, I strongly emphasize that the best choice comes from 충분한 one-on-one consultation with a plastic surgery specialist who will actually perform the surgery and has extensive experience with lateral canthoplasty, rather than relying on the internet or a consultation manager!