A Novel Way for Upper Eyelid Rejuvenation by Combination of Local Fat-Fascia-Muscle Flap Repositioning for Middle-Aged Asian Women

Background Upper eyelid aging is common among middle-aged Asians. Apart from skin aging, there has been an increasing recognition for the role of sunken eyelid playing in upper eyelid aging. Various methods have been developed to deal with the upper eyelid volume deflation. However, autologous fat tissue could not achieve stable and satisfying rejuvenation results, especially for middle-aged patients who have established extremely low adipose tissue survival rates. Therefore, efficient rejuvenation methods with consistent long-term improvement are needed, especially for middle-aged patients. Methods A retrospective study was conducted of 248 middle-aged patients who underwent the upper eyelid tightening and local fat-fascia-muscle flap reposition for upper eyelid rejuvenation in our department between 2015 and 2017. A precise sunken upper eyelid calculation method was used to evaluate the patients' upper eyelid sunken volume prior to the operation for the guidance of sunken correction. The same method was also used to calculate the post-operation upper eyelid sunken volume to evaluate the operation efficiency. Results The average age of the patients who underwent the surgery was 49.5±7 years-old. The fat-fascia-muscle flap was repositioned according to each patient's pre-operation sunken upper eyelid evaluation result, and precise and satisfying immediate sunken correction was observed after the surgery. Long-term consistent improvement was achieved. Compared to the pre-operation evaluation, the upper eyelid sunken correction ratio was nearly 90% in one year's follow-up, and no major complication occurred. Conclusions The fat-fascia-muscle flap reposition combined with sunken upper eyelid calculation has been proved efficient and consistent for middle-aged Asians upper eyelid rejuvenation.