Brow Bone Reduction Risks

Q: Dr. Eppley, I want to know the biggest risk of brow bone reduction. Is blindness a risk?And if you could tell me if osteotomies above the brow area have similar (small) risks as brow bone reduction.

A: There is no risk of blindness with brow bone reduction. The osteotomies used in an osteoblastic bone flap setback technique are done outside of the orbital contents and the orbital ape lies well below and behind this level of bone manipulation.

Having done lots of primary and secondary brow bone reduction procedures, it is an operation that has few medical risks that I have ever seen. Other than a few cases of temporary and elf-solving air leaks in bone flap techniques, I have not seen infections or any problems with the healing of the bone segments. There are aesthetic risks such as asymmetries, palpable irregularities and whether the brow bone has been adequately reduced particularly at the frontonasal junction. Like many other craniofacial surgery procedures, it looks dramatic and seems to be a high risk procedure but the superb blood supply of the head and face allow for these major operations to do well with few complications.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana