Eyelid surgery in Turkey

Blepharoplasty, usually called eyelid surgery, removes or repositions the excess skin, muscle and fat that make the upper lids heavy and the lower lids look puffy or hollow. Upper and lower lids are different operations with different recoveries, and many people only need one of them.

Turkey is one of the largest destinations for this surgery, and the price gap against the UK is real. This page explains what the operation does and does not do, when the NHS may fund it, what drives the cost, what recovery looks like week by week, and what to verify about a surgeon before you book.

Three different things produce a similar complaint, and they need different operations. A surgeon who does not distinguish them at the consultation has not examined you properly.

• Dermatochalasis, the loose skin. Excess upper lid skin from ageing. Blepharoplasty is the correct operation.
• Ptosis, the drooping lid. The lid margin itself sits low because the lifting muscle has weakened. It needs a ptosis repair, which is a different procedure. Removing skin alone will not raise the lid.
• Brow descent. The eyebrow has dropped and pushed the lid skin down. A brow lift is the answer, and taking lid skin can make the brow sit lower still.
• Fat prolapse in the lower lid. The bag is orbital fat pushing forward, not skin. It is repositioned or reduced rather than simply cut away.

1. 1

   Marking and anaesthetic

   Markings are made with you sitting upright, because lid skin falls differently lying down. Upper lids are often done under local anaesthetic with sedation; lower lids more often under general.
2. 2

   The upper lid

   The incision follows the natural crease. Skin and a strip of muscle are removed, fat is adjusted rather than stripped, and the closure sits in the fold where it becomes hard to see.
3. 3

   The lower lid

   Either through a fine incision just under the lashes, or from inside the lid with no external scar at all when only fat needs repositioning. Which route is used should be explained to you.
4. 4

   Closing and recovery

   Fine sutures, cold compresses and head elevation. You are usually discharged the same day and seen again before you fly.

• Dry, gritty eyes. The commonest complaint afterwards. Usually temporary and managed with drops, but it can persist.
• Swelling and bruising. Expected, worst in the first days, and asymmetric between the two sides more often than not.
• Watering and light sensitivity. Common in the early weeks as the lids settle.
• Blurred vision. Usually from ointment and swelling. Sudden loss of vision or severe pain is an emergency, not a side effect.
• Lower lid malposition. The lid rolling outward or sitting low. It is the specific reason to choose a surgeon who does lower lids often.
• Visible scars. Upper lid scars hide in the crease. Lower lid scars sit under the lashes and are usually inconspicuous, but they exist.

• Have your eyes examined first. Dry eye, thyroid eye disease and glaucoma all change the plan, and an optometrist or ophthalmologist should have looked at you.
• Send photographs taken straight on, in good light. Lid assessment from a selfie taken from below is unreliable, and a good surgeon will ask for better ones.
• Stop smoking well before. It affects healing of thin lid skin more than most people expect.
• Agree the blood thinner plan with your own doctor. Aspirin, anti-inflammatories and some supplements increase bruising around the eye.
• Plan not to wear contact lenses for a while. Bring glasses, and expect drops to be part of your routine for weeks.
• Book a changeable return. Flying is normally allowed after the suture check, but swelling or an eye problem will delay it.

• NHS, cosmetic procedures and eyelid surgery.
• Royal College of Ophthalmologists, oculoplastic surgery patient information.
• British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons, blepharoplasty guidance.
• Turkish Ministry of Health, health tourism authorisation for hospitals.