Upper eyelid surgery recovery guide

Day 1 (Surgery Day)

• Swelling and Discomfort: Swelling, bruising, and mild discomfort are common. As the local anaesthetic wears off you may notice some blood oozing from the edges of your wound. This is normal and to be expected. Please use some gauze to gently dab any exudate.
• Aftercare: Try to keep your head elevated at all times, even while sleeping. Apply the cold compresses we provided to the eyes for 10-15 minutes every hour to help reduce swelling and bruising.
• Medication: If you have any discomfort, you can take simple over-the-counter medications like paracetamol. Before bed, use the chloramphenicol eye ointment. Try to use the ointment immediately before bed because it will likely blur your vision.
• Restrictions: Avoid straining, bending over, or heavy lifting. Do not apply makeup or skincare products near the eyes.

Day 2-3

• Appearance: Bruising and swelling may increase over the first 48 – 72 hours and start to peak around this time ie expect things to get worse before they get better.
• Aftercare: Continue to use cold compresses intermittently throughout the day. Avoid touching or rubbing the eyes.
• Medication: Continue to use the eye ointment before bed at night.
• Rest: Get plenty of rest to help with healing.
• Eyesight: You may experience blurry vision due to eye ointments or swelling—this is normal and should improve gradually.
• Phone call: the practice nurse will call you to check on how you are getting on with healing and answer any questions you have.

Day 4-5

• Healing: Swelling and bruising should start to decrease slightly around this time.
• Warm Compresses: You should stop using cold compression at this stage. If you feel you would like some soothing relief, use warm compression with a clean cloth dipped in hot water.
• Medication: Continue to use the eye ointment before bed at night.
• Activity: You can begin light activities but avoid anything strenuous.

Day 6-7

• Follow-Up: A follow-up appointment is usually scheduled around this time to remove your sutures. Although patients are often anxious about the removal of sutures, most patients find it to be a painless experience and reflect that they were worried about nothing!
• Comfort: Discomfort should be decreasing significantly by this time.
• Medication: you can stop using the ointment at night when the sutures are removed

Week 1-2

• Appearance: Swelling and bruising should continue to decrease. Some residual bruising may still be visible, although after the first week most patients will feel comfortable getting back to normal activities albeit with the help of some make up or glasses to help disguise any bruising that settles on the cheeks.
• Aftercare: Gentle cleansing and skin care around the eyes can resume. Avoid vigorous scrubbing or pulling on the skin because the wounds are still delicate at this stage and it is possible to re-open them if you are too vigorous.
• Makeup and Contact Lenses: Avoid wearing eye makeup or contact lenses for at least two weeks.
• Eye Care: It is common to experience dry eyes after eyelid surgery, particularly if you are prone to dry eyes. You can use simple lubricating eye drops for comfort.
• Sun Protection: Wear sunglasses and SPF around the eyes when going outside to protect healing skin from UV rays.

Week 3-4

• Appearance: Swelling and bruising should be minimal at this stage, but minor residual swelling may persist, especially in the morning. This can commonly affect the eyelid itself, below the scar. It usually gets better as the day goes on.
• Routine: Most patients can resume wearing eye makeup and contact lenses at this stage unless there is a specific contraindication in your case.
• Physical Activity: Light exercise can be reintroduced, but avoid any high-intensity workouts.

Month 1-2

• Healing: Swelling will continue to subside gradually. The scars should start to lighten but will still appear pink.
• Appearance: Most patients feel comfortable returning to social activities without makeup, as residual bruising and swelling are minimal.
• Physical Activity: You may resume more intense workouts and activities.
• Scarring: Continue using sunscreen to prevent pigmentation in healing scars. You can begin using some moisturiser to massage the scars. This will help to soften and flatten the scars.

Month 3-6

• Final Results: Most patients see their final results within this time frame. Minor swelling may linger, but it typically won’t be noticeable to others.
• Scarring: Scars should continue to fade to a faint, less noticeable line. Scar massage should continue to help.
• Lifestyle: Patients can usually resume all regular activities without restrictions.

If you have any unexpected symptoms following your procedure, please contact the clinic by telephone on 0141 370 0509. In the event of a medical emergency please call this number and speak to someone. The number is available 24 hours per day, seven days per week. In the event of a medical emergency, please do not contact by email or social media because these messages can be missed.