Can ethnic blepharoplasty be performed on me?

Question:
I’m an African American female in my mid 40s who would like eyelid surgery to get rid of excess skin around my eyes. My sister told me about ethnic blepharoplasty and I would like to know how it would be performed on me.

Answer:
Although there is certainly ethnic rhinoplasty, and definitely specific techniques need to be considered when performing blepharoplasty of the upper lids in Asian patients, I am not certain that there really is a technique which is specific to blepharoplasty when performed in an African American individual.  Patients with darker pigmented skin are at risk for issues related to healing of their incisions, such as hyperpigmentation, hypertrophic scarring or keloid formation, and even prolonged healing.  The good news is that the skin around the eyes is much less susceptible to these potential healing issues and we do not see more scarring issues in African American patients when compared to lighter skinned individuals following blepharoplasty.

Posted by Dr. Philip Schoenfeld