16 Feb 2026
Facial aging can be sneaky. It’s common for a new patient to come in to one of my Boston area offices telling me that their eyes suddenly look hooded, or their brows seem flatter, or there’s now a divot by their temples that didn’t used to be there. Furthermore, these early signs of aging seem to spring up on them overnight. An important thing to understand about upper face aging is that, at first, it’s subtle. But it’s also on-going. Starting as early as 25, your body stops producing as much collagen and elastin. These are the pillars of youth for your skin and tissues. Every year, you have less of both. For certain patients, this may be coupled with damaging lifestyle choices such as too much time spent in the sun or poor hydration. Bottom line is that at a certain point, these subtle signs of aging add up and become noticeable. Understanding what, exactly, is going on may help you to make decisions about which, if any, facial rejuvenation options might be right for you. So, here is a primer on upper face aging: brows, lids and volume loss explained.
What are the Signs of Aging in the Brows?
Gravity may keep our bodies from floating off into space, but its constant pull does exact a toll on your skin and tissues. Your brows may have been a feature that you never really thought about except in terms of keeping them groomed. However, the combination of gravity and the collagen loss that occurs in every body eventually causes your brows, especially the outer third, to slowly descend. This can make your eyes appear:
- Smaller
- Heavier
- Tired
The latter is particularly frustrating. There is nothing worse than getting plenty of sleep and looking as if you are constantly exhausted. It can be demoralizing. To make the situation even more annoying, brow descent adds weight to your upper lids which results in “hooding”. Patients with aging brows tend to complain that:
- Brows appear flatter
- Loss of arch
- Heavier looking outer eye
Upper Eyelid Aging is About Skin Laxity & Fat Shift
The skin of your eyes is some of the most delicate on the body. It is thin and therefore more susceptible to environmental factors such as sun, dry air and pollution. As a telegraph of your emotions, the tissues around your eyes also undergo considerable wear and tear everyday. For this reason, aging in the eye area is typically one of the first things people notice. The upper eyelids may lose elasticity, resulting in excess skin. In extreme cases, this loose skin can even block someone’s vision. The fat pad under your eye can also bulge or shift, resulting in a noticeable puffy or creased appearance. Even if neither of these two things are readily apparent, you may find that your eye makeup is harder to apply. Patients with aging eyes will often tell me that their eyelashes feel hidden. Generally, what patients notice are:
- Hooded upper eyelids
- Creasing around and under the eye
- Perpetual look of fatigue
Volume Loss in Temples & Upper Eye
Volume loss is one of the biggest contributors to facial aging. In the upper face, we lose deep fat and bone support around the temples and upper eye socket. The end result is a more skeletal, hollowed appearance with sharper contours. Furthermore, a decrease in facial fat or volume may further exacerbate the downward pull on your brows which will compound any upper eyelid heaviness. Patients with volume loss in the temples and upper eye may find themselves noticing sunken divots on the outside of the brow, harsher angles and less softness in the eye area as a whole.
Facial Rejuvenation Options for Upper Face Aging in Boston
The good news about upper face aging is that there are a myriad of effective facial rejuvenation options. The right one for you is going to depend on your individual anatomy, lifestyle and desired outcome. As an overview, my non-surgical procedures for addressing aging in the upper face include:
- Dermal Fillers
- Fat Grafting
- Botox®
One or more of the above can work wonders in younger patients. However, the gold standard for addressing any degree of excess, loose skin is going to be a surgical procedure such as:
- Upper Blepharoplasty
- Lower Eyelid Surgery
- Brow Lift
- Deep Plane Facelift
The best way to determine the right rejuvenation option for your needs is to schedule a consultation with a Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon, such as myself, in order to be assessed in-person. For any procedure to be effective, whether its surgical or not, it must be the correct one for your unique anatomy. To find out more about dermal fillers, blepharoplasty, deep plane facelift, or any other surgical or non-surgical procedure with Dr. Akshay Sanan at the Boston Center for Plastic Surgery, contact us today or call (617) 402-2768 to schedule a consultation.
