Sometimes what looks like simple post-op swelling after double eyelid surgery is actually something else.
I want to talk about correcting mucosal show after double eyelid surgery.
Mucosal show after double eyelid surgery — how I approach it.
The crease looks thick, and the lid skin is everted.
These patients often look sleepy as well.
Of course, sometimes it really is just swelling. But true post-op swelling mostly resolves within two weeks, and even at the longest should be largely gone by one or two months and completely resolved by six months.
I see this presentation often in Chinese patients, particularly those who request a heavier crease.
The photo below is a Chinese patient. Because she still wanted a thick crease, the post-op fold remains heavier than what I would set in a Korean patient — but the mucosal show is clearly improved.
In the patient below, too much skin was excised at the original surgery. The skin shortage pulled the crease up and lifted the mucosa.
Another similar case.
The less skin you have to work with, the more residual mucosal show you may have to accept even after correction.
And as a baseline: any time you create a crease, the lash orientation changes.