Most eyebrows naturally droop or descend with age. The skin and connective tissue around the eyes and eyebrows weaken, which makes them drop. The side of the eyebrows tend to drop more than the part of the brow near the nose. Age-related eyebrow changes usually become apparent around 40-years old, but sometimes earlier. The modern cosmetic surgery technique of the endoscopic brow lift offers several advantages over the conventional brow lift.
One other common cause of droopy eyebrows is congenital or genetic. Do your siblings, parents, or other family members have droopy eyebrows?
Don’t forget than everyone has an asymmetric face to a degree. Sometimes one eye and/or eyebrow may be a little different than the other.
A more concerning cause of droopy eyebrows is weakening of the facial nerve. The facial nerve controls the muscles of the face. When this nerve is weak, the muscles it supplies also become weak. Weak facial muscles result in droopy eyebrows. Other parts of your face may appear droopy too. Sometimes facial nerve weakness (ie. facial paralysis) may be associated with strange sensations of the face or taste. There are numerous causes of facial paralysis.
Speak with your primary care physician to perform a comprehensive examination, who may then refer you to a specialist for further testing if you are concerned or have any of the following:
- progressively droopy eyebrows
- weakness of the the entire face
- weakness of just one half or one quarter of the face
- fever
- headache
- change in vision
- numbness or tingling
- speech changes
- memory changes
- pain
- drooling
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