When can I wear contacts after blepharoplasty?

Two things get in the way of contact lenses early after eyelid surgery. First, the lids are swollen and there may be sutures on the surface, which makes inserting and removing a lens awkward and puts tension on a healing incision. AAO states nonabsorbable sutures are removed 7 to 14 days after surgery, which is why that window is usually the earliest anyone discusses lenses.

Second, the ocular surface is often unhappy. StatPearls lists dry eye as a common complication after upper blepharoplasty and notes many patients need daytime drops and nighttime lubricating ointment. A dry eye plus a contact lens is a recipe for irritation, and the antibiotic ointment used on the incisions blurs vision and coats a lens.

Glasses are the easy answer for the first couple of weeks, and ASPS separately advises darkly tinted sunglasses outdoors during healing, which pairs naturally with going back to glasses for a while.

We could not find a professional society page that gives a specific day for restarting contact lenses after blepharoplasty. Ask your surgeon for your number, and stop wearing lenses again if the eye feels gritty, red, or sore when you restart.