Oculoplastic Service
Lid Express
Lid Express is an initiative by Clarity Eye Institute. It is a non-OHIP service for patients who want to remove benign eyelid growths (lumps and bumps) to improve the appearance of the eyelid and surrounding skin.
Patients can use our simple online self-referral tool to arrange their procedure with ease.
Are you a candidate
for Lid Express?
About the Lid Express Team
Our Lid Express team is comprised of highly experienced eye surgeons who have additional expertise when it comes to operating on the eyelids. Learn more about each of our renowned surgeons:
- Dr. Lisa Jagan MD, Lid Express Director
- Dr. Dan DeAngelis MD
- Dr. Robert Adam MD
- Dr. Arun Reginald MD
- Dr. Jeremy Goldfarb MD
You will be in great hands with our Lid Express team.
Step-by-Step Process
- Step 1: Consider if you’re a candidate for surgery by reviewing Suitable Candidates: Before & After Photos; these are some of the common eyelid growths we remove.
- Step 2: Start your online application. The first part of the application includes screening questions to determine if you should proceed with the full application and photo submission.
- Step 3: We will reach out within one (1) week by email to advise if you’re an eligible surgery candidate based on your photos. You will receive a quote for the expected cost of your surgery. Ineligible submissions will be notified by email to arrange a family doctor or optometrist referral.
- Step 4: We will book your in-person assessment AND same-day surgery within one (1) month from the day of your approval email. Pay your deposit ($50) to secure your surgery date; a member of our team will reach out via email with payment instructions.
- Step 5: Prepare for Surgery. You’ll receive a comprehensive guide on how to prepare for surgery once your application is approved. Read the section called “Surgery Overview: The Basics”
- Step 6: In-Person Assessment & Same-Day Surgery. Your surgeon will assess your eyelid in-person and answer any questions you may have about the intended procedure. The duration of surgery is usually 20- 45 minutes but plan to be at the clinic longer for your consultation and procedure set-up time.
- Step 7: Post- Operative Recovery. Detailed instructions for post-operative care will be emailed to you at the time you are approved for surgery.
Suitable Candidates: Before & After Photos
Candidates for the Lid Express service have benign growths (lumps and bumps) on or near the eyelid. View the before and after photos to visualize some of the common conditions that we can electively treat with surgery.
Chalazion (Stye) - Round, sometimes hard nodule under the surface of the skin, caused from blocked oil glands
Example 1:
Example 2:
Xanthelasma - Yellow fatty cholesterol deposits
Epidermal Inclusion Cyst - Dome shaped Cyst filled with white semi-solid material
Apocrine Hydrocystoma - Fluid/liquid filled cyst, often clear
Seborrheic Keratosis - Stuck-on waxy appearance, often brownish pigment
Papilloma - Fingerlike projections, skin tag
Intradermal Nevus - Flesh coloured or brown, dome shaped, eyelashes usually growing through it, often present since teenage years
Example 1:
Example 2:
A collection of before and afters can be seen on the @lidexpress Instagram account.
Curious if you’re a candidate?
Your eyelid growth may look slightly different than the images in the photos above. We may still be able to help you. The application link below will take you through a few screening questions first to help us determine if you are a good candidate.
Costs
The costs below are for reference purposes only. Each individual case will be taken into consideration. A more accurate quote for your specific surgery will be provided by email after you submit your photos.
- Cost of in-person consultation on the day of your intended surgery $110
- Cost of single growth removal $550
- Cost of multiple growth removal $750-$1500+
- Cost of complex growth requiring extra suturing $750+ per lesion
After you confirm that you would like to proceed with an in-person assessment, you will receive a secure link to process your deposit ($50). The deposit allows you to reserve your surgery. Your deposit will be deducted from the overall cost of your surgery.
Surgery Overview
Depending on your surgeon your surgery will take place at:
Vaughan
9135 Keele Street (Unit A5)
Vaughan, Ontario
Midtown
1849 Yonge Street (Suite 705)
Toronto, Ontario
Scarborough
2855 Markham Rd (Unit 408)
Scarborough, Ontario
No.
Although the majority of patients will have surgery as scheduled on the same day as the in-person assessment, this is not a guarantee.
The photos you send help us make general decisions about whether you are a good candidate for surgery, but they are not a replacement for an individualized in-person assessment. It is up to your surgeon on the day of your appointment to decide if surgery is in your best interest.
You will be emailed a comprehensive guide on how to prepare for surgery once your photos are approved. On the day of, avoid makeup, eyelash extensions and contact lenses. Bring your glasses, arrange transportation, and wear comfortable clothing.
You are not put to sleep or given sedation. We numb the area with a local injection of freezing.
The normal recovery process involves some swelling and possible bruising, usually most noticeable in the first few days after surgery. Pain is minimal to none.
Most patients will not have sutures.
In chalazion/stye excisions, the surgery is often performed from underneath the eyelid so there is no external cut.
For most other eyelid growths, the underlying skin is left to heal by “secondary intention”. This means that the skin will fill in the area where the growth was removed. Initially the site may look like a small red wound or scab. The time it takes for the skin to fill in will depend on how big the growth is to begin with, but usually ranges from 1 week to 3 weeks on average.
Directly after the procedure we may apply an eyelid patch to cover the eye. This can often be removed after a few hours. Once the eyelid patch is removed you will still be able to see but the vision may be slightly blurry due to the antibiotic ointment applied.
You will be emailed a comprehensive post-operative instruction sheet once you are approved for surgery. Antibiotic ointment and cold compresses may be recommended for recovery. Avoid direct eye-rubbing, heavy exercise, and pools for the first week.
This depends on your eyelid growth. Most patients can work the next day accepting a bit of swelling/bruising/blur from the ointment. If you think your work environment is unclean or requires heavy lifting, plan for 4 days off.
This will be at the discretion of your surgeon.
Refer to your post-op care handout or contact us via email at lidexpress@clarityeye.ca. Although not common, for any urgent issues with your post-op care, an emergency phone number will be provided to you on the day of surgery.
FAQs
OHIP covers procedures that are considered “medically necessary”. For example, removing eyelid growths that are cancerous would be an example of a medically necessary procedure. We do not perform removals of cancerous eyelid growths through Lid Express. We do perform removals of growths that appear benign.
No. This non-OHIP service is NOT designed for cases like yours. You should reach out to your family doctor or optometrist for a preliminary assessment. They may choose to refer you an oculoplastic surgeon for a formal assessment (i.e. an insured, OHIP covered process).
You will receive a refund of the $50 deposit that was collected to reserve your surgery spot. However, you will still have to pay the consultation fee of $110 for using the Lid Express service to arrange your non-OHIP surgeon assessment.
- Administrative personnel time for scheduling and organization of patient medical data
- Utilization of the procedure suite room
- Set up and sterilization of the specialized eyelid instruments used for operating in this delicate area.
- Additional supplies used during surgery including syringes, lidocaine freezing agent, gauze, eye patch, tape, cautery supplies, eyelid sutures (if required)
- Surgical assistant time
- Surgeon time
In 99% of cases, yes. But sometimes there are nuances detectable only in-person that make your surgery more involved. The surgeon will discuss these factors and why your quote may need to be higher than anticipated based on the photos you submitted.
Multiple precautions are taken by the Lid Express process to protect your personal data. However, all virtual tools are still susceptible to privacy concerns, such as interception or misdirection of your health information. By engaging in this process, you accept the implicit risks in using a virtual tool. If you would like more information about the privacy considerations in using virtual tools, please email us at lidexpress@clarityeye.ca and we would be happy to share more information before you proceed.
Carefully review your application form to make sure you have correctly entered your email address and phone number, as this is the contact information we will use to discuss your eyelid concerns. Use an email or phone number that only you can access.
When submitting photos of your eyelid growth, you do not need to show your whole face and can crop the photo so that it only shows above the nose. This makes you less identifiable.
Do not provide any additional health information in your emails that has not been requested.
Why Lid Express
Most benign eyelid growths do not require excision because they pose no risk to eye health or vision. Despite this, thousands of patients each year opt for surgery. Often, patients go through multiple referrals and waiting rooms to finally end up at the door of an oculoplastic surgeon (an expert in eyelid plastic surgery).
The Lid Express service is tailored to offer patients a hassle-free, streamlined process for arranging benign eyelid growth removals (non-OHIP).
Apply today! We look forward to seeing you and making this experience a positive one.
