Perlane Filler instead of gold weight...........

[CROOKEDSMILE]

I had lateral canthal suspension done in April of this year. The wires bug me and the left (paralyzed/weak) eye has come undone. I went to an Oculoplastic doctor in Austin, TX last week and surgery is scheduled for late December to remove the wires and to do a canthoplasty on the left eye and a canthopexy on the right. I still wear an external eyelid weight for easier closure. I did have a platinum eyelid weight 2 years ago but the doc. put in one that was too heavy and it was removed 3 weeks later. I am really tired of the external weight because the adhesive irritates my eye and I don't want a weight put in my eye again so this doctor suggested Perlane into the eyelid. He will do this during my canthoplasty and it is a collagen like filler that will add extra weight to the eyelid and will look just like my good eye. No one but me will know that it is in there. It isn't covered by insurance. It cost $1,000.00 but the effects can last up to 2 years in the eyelid. He just published a study using Perlane for weak or paralyzed eyelids and its effectiveness and was very similar to gold weights BUT it doesn't cause the bug bite bump on the eyelid like the gold weights. So...........I will have it done..........will stop wearing the external eyelid weight and will let you all know how it goes. This doctor just moved his Beverly Hills office to Austin, TX at Texas Oculoplastic Consultants. He is one of 5 other docs in this group. It is an 8 hour drive for me but hopefully will be worth my time. Just thought I would share this new technique being used in place of gold weights..............requires no surgery and takes just minutes to put in the eyelid. I am choosing to have the surgery too due to my lower lid drooping again but love the idea of a quick and simple procedure to weight load the eyelid allowing for full closure/blink in paralysis/palsy patients.
CrookedSmile/Angie

[Kaybo]

Angie~ 
Thanks for sharing this - I am very anxious to hear about the results!!  Where in Austin is this Dr. located?  It has been a long time since we lived there (that is where we lived when I had surgery) but still know the areas of the city!

K   

[nancyann]

Hi Angie:  Sorry to hear of your surgery problems.   Hope all gets fixed this time.   I am very interested to know how the Perlane  filler goes also.
Please keep us updated.
Always good thoughts,  Nancy

[arkansasfarmgirl]

I'm anxious to hear how this turns out!  I'm approaching the year mark for my surgery, and while my eye looks pretty darn good these days, and I can close it all the way, it still has a slight droop to the lower lid, and it doesn't blink as quickly or as thoroughly as my normal eye.  So I'm starting to investigate my options. 

The thing bugging me the most right now is my eyebrow on my bad side is making a frowny expression when I smile--it makes me look sad.  :-P  Dr Ranfft assures me that this is a temporary thing while eyebrow movement is coming back, but I'm thinking BOTOX.  LOL

Good luck with your surgery/procedures!!!

Vonda

[Jim Scott]

Angie ~

Your determination is inspiring.  I very much hope that the upcoming surgery and Perlane injection will be fabulously successful....you deserve it. 

Jim

[saralynn143]

Hi Angie, it's good to hear from you. I hope that this procedure works well for you. I am wondering, though, if it is a permanent solution or if you will need to have it redone periodically. And how does the doc determine how much to inject? Will it be the same amount of weight as your external weight?

Sara

[CROOKEDSMILE]

Hi Sara,
It is not a permanent fix but the filler stays in the eyelid for up to 2 years..........sometimes 3. The surgeon said that technology is coming a long ways and fillers are being made to last longer so hopefully someday they will last even longer than this. His question to me was.........."Is $1,000 worth your money to have full easy closure without having to wear the eyelid weight for 2 years?" Of course my answer was YES! I'd would pay $1,000 every 2 years for the rest of my life to keep from having to have a gold weight or platinum weight since I've already gone that route and the external lid weight irritates my skin leaving my eyelid red and swollen. So I think it is a great alternative. The amount of filler is something that the surgeon will figure out..........I didn't ask that......I'm sure it has something to do with the amount of exposure to the cornea when you blink. Like I think I have a 1mm gap when I blink so it is probably figured out based on that. Also the canthoplasty is going to help which is a permanent fix.................Although like the surgeon said...................really nothing is permanent not even the T3 because as we age we lose elasticity and will droop some no matter what procedure we have done.............so eventually nothing is truly permanent. Shucks.
I guess some wizard surgeon will have to come up with something to stop the aging process for anything to actually be PERMANENT. Anyways..........I'll let ya know how it goes.
This doc. is at Texas Oculoplastics in Austin, TX at Medical Center Plaza and operates at Seton Hospital. It is all near downtown for anyone interested in further info.
Thanks for the post guys! I haven't been on here in a long time as I have been busy enjoying my life!
Angie
May God Bless All of YOU!

[CROOKEDSMILE]

GOT BACK FROM AUSTIN, TEXAS AFTER BEING THERE A WEEK. CANTHOPLASTY OF MY WEAK EYE WENT WELL. NO MORE DROOP. PERLANE FILLER ALLOWS ME TO BLINK COMPLETELY. EXTERNAL EYELID WEIGHT NOT NEEDED ANYMORE AND THIS FILLER WILL LAST 2-3 YEARS. IT IS $1,000 FOR THE INJECTION ALONE BUT TO BE ABLE TO BLINK WITHOUT THE USE OF MY WEIGHT OR THE USE OF MY CHEEK PULLING UP TO HELP IN CLOSURE...............IT'S WORTH IT. HAD COSMETIC LIFT ON RIGHT EYE SO THAT EYES WOULD BE SYMMETRICAL....AND THEY ARE. VERY PLEASANT EXPERIENCE. SWELLING GONE BUT BRUISING STILL THERE. NOT MUCH PAIN AT ALL. DR. NAKRA WAS AMAZING AND PROFESSIONAL. WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND HIM.
PERLANE DOES WORK AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR GOLD WEIGHT SURGERY! OR EXTERNAL LID WEIGHTS! AMAZING AND YOU CAN'T TELL. IT IS AN INJECTABLE COLLAGEN FILLER IN THE EYELID!
ANGIE

[Jim Scott]

Angie ~

Congratulations on your successful procedure and the great results!  Your experience with the Perlane filler seems to be excellent!  I'm very happy for you and appreciate your sharing this experience with others who can benefit from it.  I'm sure our members would love to see a post-procedure photo, once you're completely healed. 

Jim

[saralynn143]

Fabulous news, Angie! I'm so happy for you. I also appreciate that there is an expanding range of alternatives to help us deal with facial paresis.

Please post some pictures when you are up to it.

Sara

[nancyann]

Angie:  Great news ! !   How does the Perlane filler look ?  Does it make your upper eyelid swollen due to the injected collagen ?
Always good thoughts,  Nancy

[leapyrtwins]

Thought this link might be helpful to those considering Perlane http://www.dermanetwork.org/information/perlane.asp

Jan

[mimoore]

Hmmmm interesting I will be looking into this - as always wondering if it is in Canada?
Keep us posted on this Angie.
Michelle 

[leapyrtwins]

Michelle -

apparently it is available in Canada.

http://www.dermanetwork.org/dir/direct.asp?state=Canada

Jan

[CROOKEDSMILE]

I saw the info that was posted on Perlane........ Please note that the time that it lasts in the nasolabial folds and other areas of the face greatly differs from the eyelid. The studies that have been done by my doctor shows that Perlane injected into the eyelid last from 2-3 years. Its absorption rate is much slower in this region. Also someone asked what it looks like. The paralysis hollowed out my orbital rim area anyway so the Perlane plumped that area back up and looks just like my good eye. I can't tell the Perlane is there, no lumps, no bumps just very easy eye closure and it actually rejuvenated that area to a much more youthful appearance. I would imagine it would not feel too good getting it injected into this area as I have had collagen injected into my lips and wrinkles in my face and it hurt like crazy. Luckily I was under general anesthesia for the eyelid surgery and he did the injections while I was asleep for the canthoplasty. I HATED my platinum eyelid weight mainly because they put in a 1.8 gm weight when all I needed was a 1 gm so it made my eyelid flop when I walked and gave me terrible ptosis (droopy eyelid). I LOVED the external eyelid weight but the adhesive started to irritate my skin after 2 years so this was a great option for me and well worth the money. I would make sure that an oculoplastic doctor did this injection and not a general plastic surgeon as this is pretty new and upcoming stuff. Perlane has been around for some time but using it in place of a gold weight is pretty new. My doctor is one of the docs doing the study and it is showing promising results. Most of the studies show that if you have a 1-2mm gap from full closure that you will find the Perlane helpful in getting faster and complete closure of the eye. If you have no blink reflex or very minimal closure on your own then you should stick with the gold weight as you would need much greater weights to assist in closure than the Perlane could give.
Angie..........the guinea pig.