Eyelid surgery
The eyelid is not a fold of skin. It is a precision organ.
It protects your eye several thousand times an hour. When it droops, rolls inward or no longer closes, it is not the appearance that is disturbed — it is sight itself that is at risk. At that point the lid belongs in the hands of the subspecialty created for it: plastic and reconstructive eyelid surgery.
What we operate on
Ptosis and hooded lids with impaired function
When the upper lid veils your gaze, the forehead compensates — until headaches and a restricted visual field start governing the day. The correction restores function first; that the result is also aesthetically convincing is, with oculoplastic training, not luck but craft. (Is it primarily the appearance you are concerned with? Then your page is here: Upper eyelid surgery.)
Entropion and ectropion
A lid rolled inward lets the lashes rub on the cornea; one tipped outward leaves the eye dry. Both are distressing, both are readily operable — with techniques that correct horizontal and vertical lid tension together, so that the result lasts. The same vertical tension can also fail the other way: if the upper lid margin sits too high, a strip of white shows above the iris, and the cause then rarely lies in the lid itself — see eyelid retraction — an upper lid that sits too high and its causes.
Lid tumours
Not every lump on a lid is harmless — and not every unusual finding is a drama. We assess, remove completely with histological control, and reconstruct the lid so that function and appearance are preserved. The most common malignant lid tumours — basal cell carcinomas — are permanently cured in over 90 per cent of cases by complete surgical removal.
Tear ducts
A constantly watering eye often has a mechanical cause — narrowed or blocked tear ducts. We assess, irrigate, stent or operate, depending on the findings.
Documented experience
Figures that speak for themselves
4'000+
Lid operations — reconstructive and aesthetic. Four years of direct training under Prof. Richard Collin, Moorfields Eye Hospital London.
>90%
of basal cell carcinomas — the most common malignant lid tumours — are permanently cured by complete surgical removal.
4 years
of direct training in the oculoplastic subspecialty — typical international fellowships last one to two years.
The tradition behind it
Learned where the field was written
The surgical techniques we use are considerably more differentiated than the standard techniques of general plastic surgery — because they come from the subspecialty that understands the lid as part of the eye. PD Dr von Rückmann learned them over four years directly under Prof. Richard Collin at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London: founding president of the British Oculoplastic Surgery Society, author of the 'Manual of Systematic Eyelid Surgery'. Typical international fellowships last one to two years. Four years means the entire spectrum — tumour reconstruction, ptosis, malpositions, tear ducts.
Costs & health insurance
What does the insurer pay for — and what not?
Functional lid surgery is generally covered by insurance. We draw the line to the aesthetic transparently — before the procedure.
| Service | Coverage | What this means for you |
|---|---|---|
Ptosis / malposition correction | Basic insurance where function is impaired | We document the findings for the insurance question cleanly and completely. |
Lid tumour removal & reconstruction | Basic insurance (OKP) | Medically necessary procedures are covered. |
Tear duct assessment & surgery | Basic insurance (OKP) | Covered where there is a medical indication. |
Purely aesthetic eyelid surgery | Self-pay | See Upper eyelid surgery and Lower eyelid surgery — a written quotation before you decide. |
Our promise:Before any treatment you receive a complete, itemised cost breakdown in writing — before you decide. Nothing is added to it afterwards.
Would you like to arrange an appointment for this?
Go to appointment booking: Eyelid malposition consultationOr by telephone: +41 44 500 69 00
Related topics
Related conditions
Medically reviewed by PD Dr. med. Andrea von Rückmann · Last reviewed
Frequently asked questions
- When it no longer merely bothers you but obstructs you: you raise your brows in order to see; the upper part of your field of view is missing when driving; by evening the forehead muscles ache. At that point the correction is not cosmetic but functional surgery — and in many cases covered by insurance. We document the findings so that the insurance question can be settled cleanly.
- With an entropion the lashes rub on the cornea — that hurts and can leave lasting damage. With an ectropion the lid margin tips outward, away from the eye — the ocular surface dries out and becomes inflamed repeatedly. Neither malposition resolves on its own; surgery is the standard, with very good prospects of success.
- The most common malignant lid tumours — basal cell carcinomas — are permanently cured in over 90 per cent of cases by complete surgical removal. What decides it is complete removal with histological control, and a reconstruction that preserves both the function and the appearance of the lid — precisely the combination the oculoplastic subspecialty exists for.
- Because the eyelid is a functional organ of the eye. Lid closure, tear film, protection of the cornea — anyone operating here has to be able to judge what the operation means for the eye behind it. Plastic and reconstructive eyelid surgery is therefore a subspecialty of ophthalmology in its own right. PD Dr von Rückmann learned it over four years at Moorfields Eye Hospital under Prof. Richard Collin — the author of the international standard textbook of the field.
- Most lid procedures are done as outpatient surgery under local anaesthetic, with sedation if you prefer; depending on the procedure they take 30 to 90 minutes. Swelling and bruising for a few days afterwards are normal — we tell you honestly beforehand what to expect and when you will be presentable again.
- Where there is functional impairment — a demonstrated restriction of the visual field, a malposition, a tumour — as a rule yes. Purely aesthetic corrections are self-pay. After the examination we tell you clearly which category your findings fall into, and give you the cost consequences in writing.
Have your lid assessed before it starts to occupy your eye.
An assessment shows whether, and how urgently, surgery is needed — and what insurance covers. We set out the findings, the urgency and the costs transparently.
Or call us: +41 44 500 69 00 — Mon–Fri 08:00–12:00 / 13:00–17:30