The Effect of Consultation Time on a Patient’s Decision to Undergo Blepharoplasty

Abstract

Blepharoplasty is an operation where redundant skin and musculature, and excess fat are resected and removed for functional, or aesthetic purposes, or both. Blepharoplasty is one of the most commonly performed cosmetic procedures. No previous studies have explored the factors that affect a patient’s decision to undergo blepharoplasty. We explored the factors that can affect the decision to undergo blepharoplasty in patients of the oculoplastic clinic, and specifically investigated the effect of consultation time on the patient’s decision to undergo blepharoplasty. This research was a retrospective cohort study undertaken in the private oculoplastic clinic Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia. The study was conducted on patients seeking blepharoplasty in the oculoplastic clinic of the primary investigator between December 2021 and February 2022. A convenient sampling technique was used for patient recruitment. The Chi-square test, independent t-test and ANOVA were all used to test factors associated with consultation time, and factors associated with patients’ decision to undergo blepharoplasty. A total of 97 participants were included in the study; 57 (58.8%) participants decided to undergo blepharoplasty, whereas 40 (41.2%) decided not to undergo blepharoplasty. Consultation time was not significantly associated with patients’ decision to undergo blepharoplasty. The presence of eyelid deformity or disease was the only factor significantly associated with the patients’ decision to undergo blepharoplasty. No significant association was found between consultation time and patient’ decision to undergo blepharoplasty. Further investigations are recommended to determine the factors that influence patients’ decision to undergo elective aesthetic surgery.

Keywords: consultation time, blepharoplasty, oculoplastic surgery, patient decision.

https://doi.org/10.55463/issn.1674-2974.49.8.18