Why cosmetic eyelid surgery is surging in popularity across Australia
Bec Judd is among the celebrities who have admitted to undergoing blepharoplasty — a procedure that has become one of Australia's most popular cosmetic surgeries. But there are risks.
Doctors says social media is fuelling a rise in blepharoplasty, an eyelid procedure that has become one of Australia’s most popular cosmetic surgeries.
Influencer Bec Judd recently admitted on her Vain-ish podcastthat she had undergone both lower and upper blepharoplasty,and also had fat transferred beneath her eyes.
Australasian College of Cosmetic Surgery and Medicine council member Lara Wetton said she was definitely seeing a rise in blepharoplasties, as were some of her peers.
Younger patients were wanting to address bags below the eyes with lower blepharoplasty and older patients wanted to address “excess skin” on the upper lids with upper blepharoplasty, she said.
She said people being exposed to the procedure on social media was driving its popularity.
Dr Wetton said while upper blepharoplasty recovery was quick — generally a few days — with the method she used, the lower was a bit more complex and took about a fortnight.
She said she warned patients about a range of potential complications, including bleeding.
“I also warn them that perhaps not enough skin or too much skin could be taken, or too much fat or not enough fat,” Dr Wetton said.
“I find that nowadays we’re all more focused on … what we call preservation, where there’s less removal and more redistribution.
“A lot of older patients who’ve had these blepharoplasty surgeries in years gone by look quite hollow now as they age, because too much tissue was just taken away.
“I think the risks of the blepharoplasty are actually decreasing with time, because now our aim is a more conservative approach, so we’re seeing less skin removal.”
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Melbourne’s Samuel Levi, who starred on the New Zealand version of Married At First Sight, had an upper blepharoplasty six months ago.
Levi said he’d always felt a “heaviness” around his eyes.
“Without even realising it I was constantly lifting my eyelids because it felt uncomfortable, almost like I was permanently tired,” he said.
“In photos, it even started to look like I had a slight lazy eye at times which frustrated me, and made me often insecure.”
He said he did “extensive research” before surgery,but was surprised by how little “real information” was available, especially from men documenting the full experience.
He went on to share his own journey on social media, where he has 120,000 followers on Instagram.
Levi said he paid just over $6000 for the procedure with an “amazing” Melbourne doctor.
“It took around four to six weeks before I felt fully comfortable being out in public, simply because the healing process is quite visible in the early stages,” he said.
“The procedure itself was straightforward, the recovery was manageable, and there was far less pain than I anticipated, mostly just mild discomfort at times.
“I’m extremely happy with the results.”
Perth specialist plastic surgeon Linda Monshizadeh said social media was driving the popularity of blepharoplasty among younger people.
“People often come to see me because they feel there’s a mismatch between how they feel and how they look,” Dr Monshizadeh said.
“They look in the mirror and see someone who looks constantly tired, even though they don’t feel that way on the inside and that discrepancy tends to increase with age.
“It’s really important to see a specialist surgeon because every millimetre counts around the eyes.”
Dr Monshizadeh said patients often turned to the procedure after realising non-surgical solutions were not without risk and were not a permanent solution.
“A lot of younger patients are much more informed now,” she said.
“They’ve read online or seen on social media the potential issues with under‑eye fillers, and I’m seeing more people come in requesting a surgical option first.”
Judd said she turned to surgery after filler migrated and caused puffiness under her eyes.
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) has received 33 notifications about practitioners relating to blepharoplasty since 2014, including 15 since 2022, a spokesman said.
This includes blepharoplasty that may have been done for medical reasons.
“Most of these notifications (39 per cent) were received in 2021,” the spokesman said.
“In November 2021, AHPRA and the Medical Board of Australia commissioned an external review of patient safety issues in the cosmetic sector, including how to strengthen risk-based regulation of practitioners in the industry.
“In July 2023, new guidelines were introduced for registered medical practitioners who perform cosmetic surgery and procedures.
“AHPRA and the National Boards take action against practitioners who fail to meet our high standards and put the public at risk.”
Australian woman Chloe Mowday has recently fallen gravely ill after undergoing a rhinoplasty and blepharoplasty in Vietnam.
She wound up in intensive care, with her family currently fundraising to try and bring the young mum home for further treatment.
Aussies are heading overseas for cheaper procedures, but local doctors warn this carries risk.
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Originally published as Why cosmetic eyelid surgery is surging in popularity across Australia
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