Total Eye Rejuvenation

Your eyes are the first thing people see when they look at your face, forming an immediate impression about your age, level of energy, and fatigue. The eyes are also the first part of the face to show the signs of aging, which is why total eye rejuvenation is such an effective way to restore your youthful glow—either by itself or as part of the proprietary Vertical Restore procedure.

Holistic Eye Rejuvenation with Dr. Karam

Youthful eyes positively sparkle, looking refreshed and alive, but aging can cause a combination of changes that result in excess skin of the upper and lower eyelids, puffiness or bags of the lower eyelid, sagging of the corners of the eyebrows, and loss of volume around the eyes, temples, and cheeks. Our eyelid surgery in La Jolla can give you that bright and youthful look again.

As the skin thins in this region, fine lines and wrinkles start to form, further aging your appearance. This sagging, coupled with deflation, results in a hollow, sallow, and fatigued look consistent with an aged appearance. These changes typically start in the mid-to-late 30s and progress rapidly throughout the 40s and 50s.

Our total eye rejuvenation procedure is a great way to address these issues and can be combined with a number of other facial aging treatments as part of Dr. Karam’s highly customizable Vertical Restore procedure. To learn more, reach out and set up your consultation with a member of our team today!

Dr Karam's Approach to Eyelid Surgery

Treating Aging Eyes: Everything You Need To Know About Blepharoplasties

Eye Aging 101: What You Need To Know About Eye Aging

Facial Rejuvenation with Upper & Lower Blepharoplasty

Is Eye Rejuvenation Right for Me?

Our comprehensive eye rejuvenation program can help alleviate many problem areas associated with aging. Eye rejuvenation is a great solution for those interested in:

Eliminating that aged, tired look
Looking fresh and energetic
Improving dark circles
Removing bags under the eyes
Restoring the plumpness of youth
Returning the skin and brows to their original position
Recovering the self-confidence of younger years

Preserving Your Youthful Appearance

It is important to note that when people look at your eyes, they don’t just see the upper eyelids or lower eyelids. They see the entire region around your eyes, including the skin, the hollows and dark circles beneath the eyes, and the sagging eyebrows. Gone are those sparkling windows to the soul, replaced by fatigued and shaded eyes. Our San Diego eye rejuvenation surgery may be one of the most high-impact methods of facial rejuvenation.

Traditional approaches focus on blepharoplasty, or eyelid surgery in which skin, muscle, and fat are removed in order to sculpt the eyes. In reality, the results of this procedure often make eyes look older and simply different, not better. This misses the entire goal of eyelid surgery, which is to make the eyes look refreshed and revitalized. Dr. Karam brings years of experience to the table and can create results that truly bring out your naturally youthful qualities.

Carmel Valley Plastic Surgery - Dr. Karam Banner media

Our Holistic Approach

Our preferred method for total eye rejuvenation takes a comprehensive and holistic approach to the treatment of the various changes affecting this region.

The first step is a thorough assessment of the periorbital region. Aging of the eyes results from a combination of changes to different components around them. Careful evaluation of these changes is the first step toward a true and meaningful eye rejuvenation that will leave the eyes looking bright, healthy, fresh, and natural.

Before & After

View Gallery

The Three Components of Preorbital Aging

Skin lines and wrinkles, thinning, and loss of elasticity
Volume loss, and the presence of hollows and shadows
Sagging excess skin of the upper and lower eyelids
Presence of bags underneath the eyes
Hooding of the outer corners of the eyes as a result of lateral eyebrow sagging

Treating Preorbital Aging

The skin around the eyes can become wrinkled from the repeated movement of the muscles between the eyes (glabella) and around the corners of the eyes (crow’s feet). As we age, we lose fat in the region around our eyes, temples, and cheeks. This progression has little to do with your body weight, as the fat stored in the upper cheek and area around the eyes are genetically predisposed to diminishment with age. Specifically, the periorbital fat loss affects the temples, the upper brows, the areas below the brows and below the eyes, and the upper cheeks.

All of these changes result in dark hollows under the eyes, a deflated sunken look in the cheeks, and a skeletonized bony look in the temples and upper eyelids...which we correct with our highly advanced total eye rejuvenation procedure.

Our Unique Treatment Approach

When these changes occur to each of the periorbital components, a specific treatment is assigned to each affected region noted above. Following a comprehensive assessment of the age-related changes around the eyes, a much more sophisticated treatment plan can be prepared, which may include our eyelid surgery in San Diego surgery.

The plan is referred to as the Vertical Restore procedure, and commonly involves a variety of non-surgical and conservative surgical modalities that, when combined, truly rejuvenate the face and eyes with minimal risk and downtime. This leaves the patient looking revitalized and rejuvenated without changing their overall appearance.

Volume Loss

When we lose the fat layer along the lower eyelid region and upper cheek, the eyes begin to look hollow, which gives the impression that we’re fatigued and aged. An important and highly-emphasized part of our eye rejuvenation philosophy is volume restoration with fat transfer.

Fat Transfer

This treatment complements our surgical procedures nicely and is performed alongside nearly every rejuvenation case (approximately 350 cases per year) to restore the lost volume surrounding the eyes. This results in long-lasting and natural volume restoration.

Adding volume is the most effective and important way to rejuvenate the eyes. Without it, the skin and sagging may look better, but the eyes will never have that refreshed and youthful look. Commonly filled areas include the:

Temples
Upper eyelid
Eyebrows
Lower orbital rim
Tear troughs
Upper cheeks

Sagging

When excess skin is present, a conservative surgical procedure is required to remove it. The following procedures are used to treat the specific issues.

Upper Eyelid Blepharoplasty

Upper eyelid blepharoplasty involves the removal of excess upper eyelid skin.

Lower Eyelid Blepharoplasty

Lower eyelid blepharoplasty sees Dr. Karam removing the fat pad (“bags”) and loose skin of the lower eyelid.

Lower Eyelid Skin Pinch

Lower eyelid skin pinch only removes loose lower eyelid skin and is done when there are no fat pads to remove, but only loose lower eyelid skin.

A Lateral Brow Lift

A lateral brow lift is used to lift the outer brow, diminishing the hooding and heaviness of the upper eyelid region.

While men and women enjoy looking years younger and benefit from these procedures equally, the techniques are different for each gender. Dr. Karam’s experience and expertise allow him to successfully handle the nuances related to different ethnicities and gender identities and to create a natural rejuvenation of the entire region with our eyelid surgery in La Jolla.

Advantages of Comprehensive Eye Rejuvenation

Total rejuvenation of the entire region around the eyes
Balance and harmony of the eyes
Consistency and reliability
Low complication rate
Long-lasting results (10+ years)
No change in eye shape or change in facial features
Performed under local anesthesia with IV sedation; no need for general anesthesia
Two-week downtime
Ideal balance between excellent and natural results, low risk, and brief recovery

Schedule A Consultation

Carmel Valley Plastic Surgery - Dr. Karam Gallery media

Anesthesia

Perhaps one of the biggest advantages, from a safety standpoint, is that these procedures can be performed under local anesthesia with IV sedation. With this technique, patients are comfortable and moderately sedated. Most patients choose this method to avoid any of the risks associated with general anesthesia.

Our facility is also fully equipped for general anesthesia, for patients who might prefer it. All surgical procedures are performed in our accredited and certified (JCAHO) surgical center, the Carmel Valley Surgical Center, located within the suite. This San Diego surgical center offers the highest level of safety and state regulations for outpatient surgery.

Highly-trained and experienced surgical techs, medical assistants, nurses, and a board-certified anesthesiologist all work together to create the safest and most comfortable experience possible, and the Carmel Valley Surgical Center is home to two state-of-the-art surgical suites and a recovery center.

Our rooms are equipped with the best equipment and the latest instruments, and the center also has a separate entrance and exit from the main office, allowing our patients to undergo their procedures in privacy. Your comfort is always our priority during your time with us.

Post-Procedure Care

Following your surgery, ointment will be applied to your incisions. In cases where a lateral brow lift has been performed, a gauze dressing will be applied and wrapped around the head for one night. After your procedure, you’ll return to the comfort of your home or hotel room, before coming back to visit us for an in-office check-in the following day. At this point, Dr. Karam will remove your dressings and examine your face carefully.

A cool compress will be used to reduce swelling for the first two days following surgery. Lubricating drops will be used during the day and ointment will be used at night to help keep your eyes moist and protected from drying. Antibiotic ointment will be applied to the incisions for one week.

After one week, your sutures are removed in our office. At this point, any swelling will have started to rapidly resolve. Follow-up appointments will be set at one month, three months, six months, and one year so Dr. Karam can monitor your healing and make sure all of your questions are answered.

Recovery After Total Eye Rejuvenation

Recovery is primarily related to swelling. Bruising is not commonly seen in our patients, although it is a possibility. The typical recovery period lasts between 10 and 14 days.

We recommend planning to take two weeks off of work or social engagements, so you can give yourself sufficient time to heal.

Although healing is not completely finished after two weeks, most patients are sufficiently healed and can return to work and other social occasions. Minor swelling will continue to improve steadily for up to one year following your procedure. Exercise can be resumed between three to four weeks following surgery, depending on the nature of the activity and the degree of swelling involved.

What to Expect in Terms of Your Results

There are a variety of positive results you can expect from your eyelid rejuvenation procedure, including:

A more youthful and natural-looking appearance
Elimination of hooding and heaviness in the eyelids
A full and healthy upper lid complex (no longer skeletonized, harsh, or bony)
Eradication of under-eye bags
Long-lasting outcomes that mirror your genuine, younger self
The return of self-confidence

Carmel Valley Plastic Surgery - Dr. Karam Office media

Slide One

Slide Two

Slide Three

Why Choose Dr. Karam for Your San Diego Eye Lift?

An average board-certified facial plastic surgeon performs approximately 20 eyelid and brow procedures annually. Dr. Karam, on the other hand, performs over 350 every year (over 400 performed).

Dr. Karam is double board-certified by the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and the American Board of Otolaryngology. Extensive experience translates to more natural results, more consistency, and less variability, plus a distinct knowledge of different ethnicities and facial types and how to change the techniques to best suit the particular facial structure. Dr. Karam’s careful and intentional approach ensures that no one changes their identity, but rather simply looks refreshed and youthful.

A Comprehensive Approach to Facial Rejuvenation

Dr. Karam’s comprehensive approach, which involves combining these procedures with others, is known as the Vertical Restore. The entire face looks naturally and vibrantly youthful, rather than hosting a single, unnatural element.

In his textbook, Rejuvenation of the Aging Face, Dr. Karam describes his approach to facial rejuvenation and eye rejuvenation in order to teach these ingenious techniques to other surgeons and colleagues.

Dr. Karam’s expertise in the subject has also prompted him to write a number of book chapters and scientific articles on facial plastic surgery topics, including upper and lower eyelid blepharoplasty, fat transfer, and rejuvenation of ethnic-specific (for example, Asian) groups.

Dr. Karam’s caring demeanor, excellent patient communication skills, and knowledgeable staff ensure you’re always comfortable and informed. It’s these particular attributes that have earned Dr. Karam the trust to perform these procedures on his medical colleagues and their families.

Planning your Consultation

During your La Jolla blepharoplasty consultation, your expectations will be discussed and a personalized treatment plan will be proposed after careful examination and discussion of your goals. The basic criteria for the timing of this procedure are dependent on two factors: First, Dr. Karam will assess whether there is enough sagging to justify the procedure, and second, he’ll consider your readiness to move forward.

The average patient defines the changes seen in their 40s as a point where comprehensive eye rejuvenation would make a positive difference. In general, the earlier the better. The advantages of performing the surgery sooner are that the changes will less dramatic and more, with results that last much longer.

More and more patients are utilizing these procedures as a way to maintain their appearance and prevent aging. To discuss arranging your own San Diego blepharoplasty consultation, reach out today.

Get Started