Dilated blood vessels

[jen1982]

Hi i have dilated blood vessels on my upper eyelids and i really hate them. i'm thinking of get them removed by laser. does anyone else have them?

[Gretchen]

Yes, I have them. They are telangectasias and are a sign of rosacea/ocular rosacea.

Don't get laser on your upper eyelids. I just use cover-up on mine. If you are sensitive, try mineral make-up - a GOOD mineral make-up like Colorscience or Larenim.

Gretchen

[jen1982]

why shouldn't i get laser done on my upper eyelids?

[Gretchen]

Hi Jen -

I assume that because you are on this site that you have problems with your eyes? I also assume that it is due to ocular rosacea/rosacea since you have the telangectasias...

Have you had laser before? Do you know how your skin reacts? Laser can be very, very tricky and I would not be quick to try it for the first time on my eyelids. Your eyelid skin is very different from the skin on the rest of your body and is very, very critical to the correct functioning of your eyes. If they become inflamed, you are looking at blepharitis. If they are appositioned incorrectly following surgery, you are looking at incorrect pumping of the meibomian glands when blinking and resultant PAINFUL dry eyes that are chronic.

Dermatologists and cosmetic surgeons are not opthalmologists and have little understanding of the ocular wetting structures and processes. Have you consulted your opthalmologist on this procedure? He is going to tell you no.

You need to be very cautious about anything that you do to your eyes. If this is purely for cosmetic reasons, get some cover-up. Bad results from this could change your life. If you have any doubts, spend some time on this board and see what folks are going through following Lasik, Accutane, Blepharoplasty etc.

Regards,
Gretchen

[jen1982]

thanks. i was to see my optometrist yesterday and he said my oil glands are blocked and that's why i have dilated vessels on my lids. it for cosmetic reasons i look so ugly it makes me not want to leave the house and i already have problems with the way i look.

[Gretchen]

Hi Jen -

I am so sorry about the current problems that you are having. But telangectasias on your eyelids can be covered up with make-up. Do you have problems tolerating make-up? The mineral make-ups that I listed are often very, very well tolerated by rosaceans.

And it sounds like you have ocular rosacea. You need to be very,very careful with your eyes. Please do more research on this board and go from there.

And I don't believe for one moment that you are ugly. I can't help but hear a lot of sadness in your last post. Are you seeing anyone about the way that you are feeling? This is probably a good next step instead of eyelid laser surgery. There are many of us on this board that have had to get some help in this regard.

I wish you the best of luck.
Gretchen

[alisonW]

Hi Jen,

I just have to say that I completely agree with all that Gretchen has said - she has given you very good advice.

Here are some links that explain ocular rosacea. Keep in mind that many people with ocular rosacea have no facial symptoms at all.

http://www.medem.com/?q=medlib/article/ZZZ8SSZXLDE

http://www.stlukeseye.com/Conditions/OcularRosacea.asp

http://www.about-rosacea.com/ocular-rosacea.htm

Hth!
Alison

[jen1982]

What about Sclerotherapy to remove the blood vessels on my eyelids, does anyone know anything about this procedure?

[Gretchen]

Sclerotherapy on the face is controversial and not widely practiced. Sclerotherapy is mostly for varicose veins in the lower part of the body, eg thighs. I know that there was a study on doing this on upper eyelids a while back, but again, if you have ocular rosacea, not a good idea.

Gretchen

[sazy123]

Yep dilated blood vessels= ocular rosacea, and big cause of dry eye. The vascular component of dry eye is often ignored by those researching DE imo.

I Have dialated inner eyelid blood vessels which cause alot of inflammation, that causes bad dry eye, im still hoping IPL is going to help with that... but now im not sure it will.


But if you have them on the ''outside'', that is causing DE it is probably more likely to help.