Aria Medical Group Official Blog

In December, Louise Truelove, Chief Patient Care Coordinator at Aria Medical Group, underwent eyelid surgery, known as a ‘Blepharoplasty’. In this feature article, she takes us through the procedure.

Click on the image below to read the feature in this month’s edition of Gibraltar Magazine, or scroll down to read the Q&A.

How did you know it was time to have surgery?
I’m 47 and I felt I looked tired. I’m not over weight and I use high quality skin care products, but I wasn’t able to reverse the bags that had developed over my upper eyelids. Every morning I would have difficulty with my eye makeup too, so it was certainly time to do something about it. Botox and cosmetic creams can help with wrinkles but only surgery can have a long term effect on upper and lower eye bags.

Eye surgery can be for lower lids and/or upper lids – which procedure did you have?
I had upper eyelid surgery. I don’t have bags under my eyes, so I just wanted to correct the problem of the excess skin and fat that was weighing down onto my eyelids, which comes with ageing.

Talk us through the procedure.
After my private consultation with Dr. Marco Vricella, I scheduled my ‘pre op’ tests. These include a blood test, an ECG heart assessment and a chest x-ray; and also a meeting with Damien Moore our Clinical Services Director who goes through one’s medical history and discusses post procedure care – together they take less than an hour, so it’s easy for anyone to balance with home or work commitments.

Then on the day of my eyelid surgery, I arrived half an hour before my appointment; in my private room I changed into a theatre gown and then I was taken to the pre-surgical room to meet Dr. Vricella where he marked my eyes with a pen, to show the areas for surgery, and my ‘pre-op’ photos were taken.

In theatre I was given an anaesthetic so I was unaware of the 45 minute procedure; but since it is not a general anaesthetic, I was able to make a quick recovery, without an overnight stay. I spent less than 2 hours in the recovery room afterwards, before I was given something to eat and I was ready to be collected and driven home by my husband.

Tell us about aftercare.
There are some stitches where the excess skin and fat is removed. These are covered with adhesive sterile strips, so I had to keep my face dry for a week, so that means being careful in the bath and shower.

After the week, the stitches are removed and the healing tissue is protected with adhesive strips for a further few days. Aria Medical Group is on hand 24 hours a day as part of the aftercare service, to answer any questions.

In terms of discomfort, it was very mild. The adhesive strips can itch slightly, but recovery was easy to deal with; I joke that I have had bikini waxes that have been more painful!
It takes a week for the bruising to go down, so if you want to have this procedure discreetly and not tell people, then schedule it so you have at least a week when you don’t need to be out meeting people. If it is for an important social occasion like a wedding, then allow at least 3 weeks for complete recovery.

Did people notice the surgery once your eyes had healed?
The results are definitely noticeable, but Dr.Vricella prides himself on natural looking results, avoiding the “surprised” look. People notice that one’s face is younger, healthier looking but they don’t always know exactly why.

So, not only do I feel so much more confident and younger but friends comment that I look really well – as if I had just come back from holiday.