Can A Lateral Canthoplasty Elongate The Width Of My Eyes?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I’m planning to visit you after my jaw surgery in a few months for this specific concern. I would just like to ask a few questions, if that would be okay? 

I have horizontally short eyes (30mm palpebral fissure, but I measured this myself so it’s not accurate) and a negative canthal tilt, would a lateral canthoplasty be able to elongate the width of my eyes and at the same time raise the corners up so that the NCT would be eliminated? I have heard from other surgeons that raising the corners up can make the eyes shorter so I’m just worried? Any other eye surgeries that I would benefit from? 

TLDR: would a lateral canthoplasty elongate my droopy eyes and make it upturned? any other eye surgeries that I would benefit from? 

Sorry for the bombarding of questions! I attached my pictures if that helps a bit.

A: As a general rule a lateral canthoplasty changes the tilt of the outer corner of the eye but will not create a longer palpebral distance. And it is a good thing that it doesn’t as separating the corner of the lids from the eyeball (increasing palpebral length) would generate a lot of eye irritation symptoms. There is an intimate relationship (contact) between the eye corner and the eyeball which should not be anatomically disrupted.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana