A site' for sore eyes

The eyes are the mirror to your soul, goes the saying. As we age, the eyes get covered as the eyelids start drooping, instead of large wide almond shaped eyes, we only get to see half the eye.

The reason behind it all is aging. As we age, we lose the fat in our face. The forehead gets thinner, so the support system for the skin weakens causing skin to drop down and sag. This causes the brows to drop and the pressure from this causes the lids to sag. There is also loss of the muscle tone which help open and close the eyelids, causing weakening of this function. So the eyelids don’t open as much and the brows perpetually seem to help up high.

However, there are various options available today ranging from non surgical to surgical solutions to correct this issue. Non surgically, the first step is to have some skin tightening in this area using radio frequency waves. This is the mildest and requires six sessions weekly, followed by monthly maintenance. The improvement is marginal, but it slows down further droop.

HIFU has become very popular recently for brow lid rejuvenation. This technology uses ultrasound waves to cause deep heating of the skin fat and this causes substantial tightening by increasing the collagen and elastin. This requires two sessions spaced three months apart and a yearly maintenance after that.

The buzz though is all about botox and fillers. Using advanced injection techniques it’s possible to get the brow to lift and eyelid to open by relaxing the negative muscle vectors or the depressor muscles, so that only elevator muscles can act. An added advantage to having botox is also that eyes can be made to look larger and more open, giving you the big eyed doe look.

This is the fastest acting and quickest way to get results within a week. Fillers like juvederm are used at same time to increase the volume and replace the lost fat, which adds more support to the eye area. It’s also used to remove the hollow eye effect that is seen with ageing .

Surgically there is the upper lid surgery — blepharoplasty and brow lift. But if not done well you have brows that look raised perpetually, giving you a quizzical and comical look. We have sadly seen this in several of our older celebrities. Yet, this is the most long lasting result, but correction of a poor job is tough and sometimes irreversible.

The important point to note here is that the earlier you start, the better the results because it’s really about prevention not correction. One little mistake will require correction and require constant maintenance, just like your body or your hair or your nails. Nonsurgical options are always the best and if it does not work then there is always surgery.

The writer is a consultant cosmetic dermatologist.
(Disclaimer: Always check with an expert before going ahead with such treatment.)