Plastic Surgery Articles

There are many factors that cause one to take the plunge to alter his/her appearance with plastic surgery. Studies have proven, however, that the majority of individuals who undergo facial plastic surgery do it because they feel their face does not represent their mood or inner emotions.

A recent study reveals that most individuals who get facial plastic surgery have a common complaint — that while they feel one way, their facial expressions lead others to believe they feel something different.

For example, people with droopy eyelids appear to be tired all the time, even though they may be well rested. And, people with deep intense wrinkles in the forehead or between the eyes may appear angry or upset, even though they may be experiencing feelings of happiness or joy.

John Persing M.D., co-author of a study published in a recent issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, discovered that variations in the face such as wrinkles, droopiness of the eyelids and brows, or excess facial skin can affect the way people perceive one’s mood or emotional state.

Persing digitally altered a photograph of a young face and created 16 different photos. He then showed all 16 images to a group of 20 healthcare workers and asked them to rank each photo on a scale from zero to five for the appearance of seven emotions: tiredness, happiness, surprise, anger, sadness, disgust and fear.

Using digital technology, Persing altered the shape and position of the eyebrows and the position of both the upper and lower eyelids. In some of the photos he also added excess skin and facial wrinkles to the youthful looking face.

After the healthcare workers examined the photos and ranked them, Persing studied the results. He found that the overall shape of the eyebrows resulted in the biggest change in perception of mood. The study showed that the more distance between the eyebrow and the eye created a higher perception of sleepiness as did droopiness of the eyelid.

The raising of the eyebrow away from the eye also increased the appearance of surprise and fear while raising only the inner corners of the brow away from the nose created an illusion of sadness.

Happiness was perceived in the images where only the lower eyelids were raised and in the images that had more wrinkles on the outer edges of the eyes, also known as crow’s feet — an attribute associated with smiling.

According to the findings from Persing’s study, the face, especially the eyes tell a lot about an individual and can communicate expressions and inner emotions. Even the slightest modification in one’s face, such as an eyebrow or lid lift can dramatically alter the way others perceive us and our emotions.