09 February 2011

POST-OP

Today is day 15 of the post-op for the ptosis surgery. I have not been updating the attached log because there seemed to be no difference from day 9 onwards. When would the swelling come down, I wonder? Whatever it is, during the recent review with the operating doctor on 7 Feb, I was told that I have a congenital problem in my left eye that may never be corrected because of the loose tendon that links to the levator muscle. I was advised that the right eye was deliberately over-corrected and would improve over time and the eye lash line would lower down to match the left eye. I was told that the distance between the white dot in my eyes and the eye lash line is now about 3 mm on both sides, which is within the acceptable range of normal eyes. I guess all I could do now is just to wait and hope for the best.

Day 2 (27 Jan)
I woke up to more swelling and bruising around the eyes. The area below my left eye swelled up and was a bit bluish although the area below the right eye was only slightly swollen. There was some bleeding along the creased lines. I know my eyes were slightly asymmetrical prior to the surgery but now the left eyelash line seems to be hanging lower than the right, making it appear that one eye is bigger than the other. However, I wasn't able to shut my right eye completely.

Day 3 (28 Jan)
The swollen parts above the new eyelids were looking less red and purplish although the part between the creased lines and upper lash line were still reddish and swollen. The area below the right eye is now more swollen. They said the first three days of swelling and bruising would be the worst and it would go down after that. There was still some bleeding along the creased lines.

Day 4 (29 Jan)
The areas below the eyes were less swollen today and I woke up with no blood along the creased lines. Now what is remaining is the area between the eyelids and the upper lash line. My friend said this part would be swollen for at least a month although I hope it would go down quickly. The crease line above my right eye seems to be looking good but I am not happy with the one above my left eye because there seemed to be a new but more prominent eyelid line above the new crease. And this left eye seems to be smaller compared to the right eye because of the lower lash line. There were times when the right eye felt slightly uncomfortable as if there was something blocking my vision. I checked it frequently but found nothing obscuring it.

Day 5 (30 Jan)
The areas above the lash line and below the new creases are still reddish and swollen. The right eye still cannot be closed completely and the discomfort feeling of the presence of some foreign matter in the eye is still there.

Day 6 (31 Jan)
Both my cheeks below the eyes are still slightly puffy and yellowish whilst the areas above the lash lines are still swollen, albeit they were slightly less red. The right eye is still uncomfortable as if there was something below my eyelid and obscuring my view. Anyway, I went for a review today and had the sutures removed. Another doctor, not the operating doctor, saw me and after I voiced my concerns i.e. one eye bigger than the other, the discomfort, he told me not to be too worried as it is still too early to see the actual results and that the operating doctor would teach me a method to "adjust" my right lash line lower to make the eyes more symmetrical. I hate it that at both ends of my eyes, the "y" fork is more prominent than before. Shouldn't this have been removed during the surgery? I also hate it that the new crease lines are not consistent with the natural folds that my eyelids are forming. The good news is that any revision performed after this would be covered by the centre.

Day 8 (2 Feb)
It pretty much remained the same. The yellow patches below the eyes are slowly fading and the right eyelid is still more reddish and swollen compared to the left eye where the swelling seemed to have subsided. The space between the new crease and lash lines are still a bit wide, although it is no longer scary.

Day 9 (3 Feb)
Things seemed to be the same as yesterday. The new crease is formed above the left crease,, so for that eye, I appear to have 2 lines. For the right eye, the eyelid is a bit red and the crease is there but for both eyes, the tailed ends form the y.