Eyelid Surgery in Turkey

The question in our heading comes up in a lot of first messages. Eyelid surgery in Turkey, or blepharoplasty, takes care of the skin and fat behind that look.

It's one of the quicker facial operations to recover from. The harder part is working out what's actually causing the tired look, because it isn't always the lids.

Upper, lower or all four?

Upper blepharoplasty is for skin resting on the lashes. Bags under the eyes are handled by lower blepharoplasty, usually through moving or removing fat.

You might need one, or both. Doing all four lids at once (quad blepharoplasty) keeps it to one anaesthetic.

Hooded eyes vs ptosis

Hooded eyes usually mean extra skin above the crease. A droopy eyelid, where the edge of the lid itself sits low over the pupil, is ptosis, caused by a weak lifting muscle. Removing skin won't fix that, so we measure the lid edge before anything else is planned. Say people have told you since childhood that you look sleepy. That points more towards ptosis than extra skin, and it's worth mentioning when you write to us.

Sometimes the eyebrow has dropped and is pushing skin down onto the lid. Then a brow lift usually helps more.

Bags, dark circles or hollows?

True bags are fat bulging forward, the thing lower blepharoplasty is for. Flat dark rings are different, often pigment or a vein showing through, and no operation will lighten them. A hollow that throws a shadow is another story, because fat can be moved into it.

If what bothers you is mainly a hollow without much bulging, filler under the eyes may be enough for a while. We'll tell you honestly if surgery is more than you need.

Eye bag removal without a visible scar

Many lower lid operations are done from the inside of the lid, so there's no cut on the skin at all. This suits younger patients with bags but good skin tone. When there's also loose skin, a fine cut just under the lashes is used instead, and it usually becomes very hard to see. The lower blepharoplasty page goes into both approaches.

Will it change the shape of my eyes?

It shouldn't. That's the fear we hear most, usually from someone who has seen a friend's eyes turn round or hollow after surgery somewhere. It happens when too much is taken, and we'd rather leave a little behind. If you liked how your eyes looked ten years ago, an old photo is a useful guide, so send one along with your other pictures.

Scars after blepharoplasty

On the top lid, nobody sees the scar once your eyes are open, because it sits in your own fold. On the lower lid it's hidden inside, or sits right under the lashes, and stays pinkish for a while. Wear sun cream on it.

Eyelid surgery and vision

Say you've noticed you lift your eyebrows to read, or the top of your view feels cut off. Heavy lids can do that. Taking that skin away can help, and some find their tension headaches ease. Eyelid surgery doesn't correct eyesight itself, though.

Options without surgery

Not ready for an operation? A little Botox lifts the brow slightly. Filler can plump a hollow under the eye. Loose skin and fat pads stay, though, and the effect is gone within months. If your eyelid surgery before and after would clearly change with surgery, it tends to be better value.

Eyelid surgery for men

Men usually want to look less tired without looking "done", so we take a little less upper lid skin and keep the crease low. Inherited eye bags are common in men and can appear in their twenties or thirties. The scars hide just as well on men as on anyone else. Quite a few men first notice the problem on video calls, where a webcam above the screen makes heavy lids look heavier still.

Age and eyelid surgery

Most patients are somewhere between their late thirties and sixties, but there isn't a fixed age. Younger people with inherited bags under the eyes are good candidates for lower lid surgery. Older patients often have both skin and fat to deal with, and sometimes a drooping brow as well. In our experience, people in their sixties and seventies recover from eyelid surgery about as comfortably as younger patients, provided their eyes are healthy.

Dry eyes and contact lenses

Tell us early if your eyes tend to be dry. The same goes for past laser eye surgery, and for wearing contact lenses most days. Surgery can dry the eyes out for a while, so in that case we might take a little less skin. Leave contact lenses out for a week or two.

Eyelid surgery risks

Bruising and swelling usually last a week or two. Dry or watery eyes are normal at first, and for a few days the lids may not shut completely. A slightly uneven result, or a lower lid that sags a little, is less common; that's why the tone of the lower lid is checked before surgery. Serious problems with vision are very rare.

Recovery after eyelid surgery in Istanbul

After half a night on the ward, you'll spend about six nights for blepharoplasty in Istanbul. It's sore rather than painful. Use cold packs and an extra pillow early on, go easy on screens, and stick to light glasses that don't press on the lids.

Any stitches are removed before you fly. Most bruising has cleared within two weeks, and many people are back at work then, sometimes with tinted glasses. Make-up around the eyes can usually go back on after about two weeks, and sunglasses are worth wearing outside for the first month while the scars are new. The lids look settled from around three months.

Are both eyes done together?

Yes. Both sides are always done in the same operation, so they heal at the same pace and end up matching. Doing one eye at a time would mean two recoveries and a harder job getting them even.

Best time of year

Any season works. Some people prefer autumn or winter, when the sun is weaker on new scars and sunglasses on a grey day don't draw comment. Summer is fine too, as long as you're careful about sun on the lids for the first few months. If you smoke, any season is better once you've stopped for a couple of weeks, since smoking slows healing.

Anaesthesia

You're asleep for it. Our prices include general anaesthesia, so you sleep through the operation and wake up with the lids already stitched. You then rest on the ward for a few hours, and someone from the team takes you back to the hotel. A friend or partner is welcome to come along for the first couple of days.

Flying home after eyelid surgery

Your stitches come out before the flight, so travelling home is fine. Put your drops in every hour or so on board.

Results over the years

Upper lids generally stay improved for many years. The skin goes on ageing, and a few people have a small tidy-up a decade or more later. Fat removed or repositioned in the lower lids rarely comes back. Most people find eyelid surgery in Turkey is something they do once. If a top-up is ever needed, it's usually a small procedure under local anaesthetic.

Combining eyelid surgery with other procedures

A dropped brow is a common reason to add a brow lift. Some patients add eyelid surgery to a facelift so the whole face is refreshed at once. Others are interested in a lifted, almond outer corner, which is a different operation covered on the fox eye lift page. If you're weighing up more than one, we'll tell you which can safely share an anaesthetic.

Judging eyelid surgery before and after photos

The gallery above shows eyelid surgery before and after photos for both upper and lower lids. Look at the eyes at rest rather than smiling. A good upper lid result shows a clear crease without looking hollow or surprised. A good lower lid result looks smooth, with no pulled-down lid and no sunken look under the eye.

Check when each after photo was taken. At two weeks there's still some swelling; at three months you're seeing the real result. Your own before and after photos, taken in the same light each time, are the best way to track it. Patient reviews fill in what photos can't, like how long the bruising really took to fade.

Eyelid surgery cost in Turkey

Two eyelids, upper or lower, cost €2,400 with us, and all four cost €2,900. The price includes the anaesthetic and hospital stay, plus airport transfers, an interpreter and video follow-up for a year. Ptosis repair is priced separately after examination.

In the UK, upper lids cost €3,900 to €5,850 according to the table above; Germany charges €4,500 to €6,000 and the US €4,450 to €5,550. Lower lids range from €3,500 to €7,000. Check whether any eyelid surgery price you're given is for two lids or four.

What to check in a clinic

Price matters less than you'd think when comparing clinics for eyelid surgery in Turkey. What counts is whether the clinic measures for ptosis and looks at your brow before recommending an eyelid operation. Here, blepharoplasty, ptosis repair and brow lift are all done in-house, so the advice isn't limited to one answer. It's also worth asking who looks after you once you're home. Here, the same team follows you up by video for a year.

Photos for your eyelid surgery plan

Send close-up photos of your eyes from the front and at a three-quarter angle, in daylight, with your forehead completely relaxed. Add one with your eyes gently closed. Mention dry eyes, contact lenses or past eye surgery. We'll come back with which lids need work, whether the brow or a weak lid muscle plays a part, and the price for your eyelid surgery in Turkey.