Lower eyelid aesthetics after endoscopic forehead midface-lift

To assess and quantitate the immediate effect of endoscopic forehead midface-lift on infraorbital hollowing and lower eyelid skin excision.

Twenty-five patients who underwent an endoscopic forehead midface-lift with a lower eyelid blepharoplasty or lower eyelid blepharoplasty without a midface-lift between January 1, 2005, and May 15, 2005, were included in the study. Preoperative and immediate postoperative measurements of the vertical height of the lower eyelid were taken in all patients. The change in the vertical height of the lower eyelid after endoscopic forehead midface-lift with blepharoplasty was compared with the change in lower eyelid height after either transconjunctival or lower eyelid skin pinch blepharoplasty or skin muscle flap blepharoplasty alone. The amount of lower eyelid skin excised after endoscopic forehead midface-lift with blepharoplasty was compared with both transconjunctival or lower eyelid skin pinch blepharoplasty and skin muscle flap blepharoplasty when a midface-lift was not performed.

The average change in the vertical height of the lower eyelid after the endoscopic forehead midface-lift was 5 mm. Lower eyelid blepharoplasty alone, whether transconjunctival with skin pinch or skin muscle flap, did not affect the vertical height of the lower eyelid. The change in the vertical height of the lower eyelid with midface surgery over blepharoplasty alone was statistically significant (P < .001). The average amount of lower eyelid skin excised after endoscopic forehead midface-lift and lower eyelid skin pinch was 7.0 mm compared with 5.5 mm for both the transconjunctival lower eyelid skin pinch and the skin muscle flap techniques. The difference in skin excision when a midface-lift was performed compared with blepharoplasty alone was statistically significant (P = .008).

The endoscopic forehead midface-lift can reduce the vertical height of the lower eyelid by an average of 5 mm and allows more skin excision over blepharoplasty alone. The endoscopic forehead midface-lift is a powerful tool for decreasing the vertical height of the lower eyelid, lessening infraorbital hollowing, and improving dermatochalasis.