Method
- Retrospective review of medical records, January 2020 to January 2025.
- 102 patients (198 eyes) who underwent double eyelid repair surgery with this sliding-plane reconstruction technique.
- Patients grouped by severity of preoperative upper eyelid adhesion: mild group (142 eyes) and severe group (56 eyes).
- Two independent observers collected preoperative and postoperative photographs, physical examination scores, outcome evaluations, satisfaction rates, and complications.
Findings
- Mild group: mean preoperative physical examination score 1.56, mean postoperative score 0.08 (Z = -14.735, P < 0.001).
- Mild group satisfaction: 130 of 142 eyes satisfied, a rate of 91.55%.
- Severe group: mean preoperative score 4.53, mean postoperative score 0.11 (Z = -9.824, P < 0.001).
- Severe group satisfaction: 52 of 56 eyes satisfied, a rate of 96.30%.
- No serious complications were observed.
- Level of evidence IV, clinical study.
What it means for a patient
- For patients with an unsatisfactory double eyelid crease caused by scarring or missing orbital fat, this technique rebuilds a sliding plane under the eyelid skin to restore a working crease.
- Both patients with milder and more severe preoperative adhesion scores showed significant score improvement after surgery in this series.
- Reported satisfaction was high in both groups: over 91% in the mild-adhesion group and over 96% in the severe-adhesion group.
- This is a retrospective single-technique case series without a comparison group, so it does not show how this approach compares with other repair techniques.
Citations
PubMed https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42721151/.
Terms
- Double eyelid repair: revision surgery to correct an unsatisfactory upper eyelid crease from a prior double-eyelid procedure.
- Orbital septum: a thin membrane behind the eyelid skin that normally holds orbital fat in place.
- Sliding plane: the layer of tissue that allows the upper eyelid skin and muscle to glide smoothly over deeper structures when the eye opens and closes.
- Adhesion: scar tissue that abnormally binds eyelid layers together, restricting normal movement.
- Physical examination score: a numeric rating, lower meaning less deformity, used here to grade eyelid adhesion severity before and after surgery.