Hooded Eyes and Dermatochalasis
I visited the dermatologist the other day to have a bump checked out. He surprised me when, out of the blue, he commented that my eyes looked hooded. Though I wasn’t ready to sign up for Botox or the surgery he wanted me to have to treat it quite yet, I did learn some interesting facts about the condition.
What causes Hooded Eyes?
Apparently, the condition isn’t just cosmetic. In fact, people with hooding or a condition called Dermatochalasis have excess upper lid tissue. As one ages, the skin often continues to loosen and can cause a subtle and slow loss of peripheral vision. In fact, when I put on social media that my doctor thought I had hooded eyes, a friend actually replied that his aunt had to have her hooding fixed because she could no longer see past her droopy eyelids!
Who is affected?
Hooding is most common in older people, generally over age 60, so I am a little too young to qualify for treatment. Though, apparently doctors do suggest that you get it taken care of earlier rather than later–before you start to have vision problems. A common way to treat it is with a cosmetic surgery that lifts your brows. But, the great news is, most of the time it is covered by insurance and not classified as a cosmetic surgery because of the necessity of having a clear field of vision.
What are the symptoms?
People with eye hooding may experience visual fatigue and headaches. In addition, they have difficulty seeing because there is a decreased amount of light entering eyes. On the cosmetic side, apparently a lot of people with a hooding problem have increased forehead wrinkles because they raise their eyebrows a lot, subconsciously, in order to be able to see better.
Once I started seeing before and after pictures of people who had undergone treatment for the problem because it was affecting their vision, I was convinced that the dermatologist may have been right. Someday, I may be a candidate for this surgery as well. I’m a little afraid of plastic surgery and certainly concerned that I would end up having the perpetual look of surprise! But, if my choices are a little brow lift or not being able to see to drive…I guess I’ll choose the former!
If you are concerned that you have excess eyelid skin impacting your vision, talk to your closest America’s Best optometrist for an evaluation and a referral.
