Oculoplastic surgery (eyelids)

Oculoplastic surgery covers operations on the eyelids, the tear ducts and the replacement with a prosthesis of a painful or unsightly eye. It combines a functional and an aesthetic dimension.

The eyelids

With age, the eyelids are prone to many problems that are often simple to correct surgically:

• Growths or tumours, benign or malignant, treated by laser, radiofrequency or surgery
• Entropion: the eyelid turns inward and the lashes rub and irritate the eye
• Ectropion: the eyelid turns outward and the eye becomes watery
• Dermatochalasis: excess skin and muscle covers the lashes and reduces the visual field
• Ptosis: the levator muscle slackens and the upper eyelid droops
• Eye bags: the loosening of the orbital septum allows fat to protrude

The tear ducts

The tear ducts drain excess tears towards the back of the nose to prevent watering. Sometimes a tear duct opening that has closed with age must be reopened and a small silicone stent placed. In some newborns the tear duct stays blocked: probing can be performed if massage is not enough after 6 to 9 months. Conversely, when eyes are too dry, the tear ducts can be plugged to keep tears on the eye for longer.

Enucleation

When an eye is blind and too painful or unsightly, or in the case of an intraocular tumour, it may be better to remove it. This operation, often feared, is not painful and gives excellent aesthetic results. The eye is replaced by a ball integrated into the tissues, onto which the muscles are sutured to ensure movement. After six weeks of healing, an ocularist fits a prosthesis that resembles a large contact lens.