Investigation of automated perimetry in the evaluation of patients for upper lid blepharoplasty.

We investigated the application of automated perimetry in the evaluation of 17 patients for upper lid blepharoplasty. Visual fields were assessed by a 114 point threshold related screening test of the superior visual field on the Humphrey Allergan Model 640 visual field analyzer. Patients enrolled in the study underwent a complete oculoplastic evaluation prior to and at 4-6 weeks after their procedure. Postoperatively, the visual field as measured by the number of points seen, increased by 26.2% (p < 0.000001). Improvement in visual field results was most dramatic in patients whose margin reflex distance (MRD) was < or = 3.5 mm. This effect was related to excision of redundant eyelid tissue rather than a change in MRD after blepharoplasty. Above this MRD level, blepharoplasty did not significantly improve the patients superior visual field. These results suggest that automated perimetry provides valuable information to document visual field changes for medicolegal and insurance purposes.