# Almond Eye Surgery (Canthoplasty) in Istanbul, Turkey

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By Muhsin Yilmaz, MD, FEBOPRAS · Medically reviewed September 2026

Almond eye surgery is the name given to operations that reshape the outer corner of the eye, so that the corner sits slightly higher and the eye reads as almond-shaped rather than round. It is sold under several names — fox eye, cat eye, Bella eyes — and it is one of the operations I decline most often, because in many of the faces that ask for it the lift they want comes from the brow and the temple rather than from the corner of the eye.

- **Surgery:** 1–2 hours
- **Hospital stay:** Day case
- **In Istanbul:** ~7 days
- **Socially presentable:** ~2 weeks

## What Almond Eye Surgery Actually Is

The outer corner of the eye is held by the lateral canthal tendon, which anchors the two lids to the bone at the orbital rim. Almond eye surgery is surgery on that anchor: it is tightened, or detached and re-fixed higher and a little further out, so that the outer corner rises and the opening of the eye becomes narrower towards the outside and longer in shape.

That is the whole operation. It is small, it is precise, and it changes millimetres — which is the reason it can look elegant when it fits the face and obviously operated when it does not.

## The Names: Fox Eye, Cat Eye, Bella Eyes, Almond Eye

Fox eye, cat eye, Bella eyes and almond eye are marketing names, not techniques. They describe a look — a lifted outer corner and a slightly tilted eye axis — and different clinics produce it with quite different procedures: a canthopexy or canthoplasty at the corner, a [temporal lift](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/temporal-lift) that raises the tail of the brow and the outer tissue, an [endoscopic lift](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/endoscopic-facelift), or threads placed under the skin.

Whenever you are quoted for a fox eye lift, ask what will be done anatomically. If the answer is vague, the price is meaningless — and if the answer is threads, the effect is temporary, which is why [I do not perform thread lifts](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/thread-facelift).

## Canthopexy and Canthoplasty: Not the Same Operation

These two words are used interchangeably online and they should not be.

A **canthopexy** tightens and supports the existing canthal tendon without detaching it. It is the lighter of the two, it is what I most often perform, and it is very frequently done as part of lower eyelid surgery to stop a lax lid sagging after the operation rather than to change the shape of the eye.

A **canthoplasty** detaches the tendon and re-fixes it in a new position. It is the operation that genuinely changes the shape and the tilt of the eye, it is less forgiving, and it is the one that carries the risks in the section below.

| Aspect | Canthopexy | Canthoplasty |
|---|---|---|
| The tendon | Supported and tightened in place | Detached and re-fixed in a new position |
| Main purpose | Supporting a lax lower lid; a subtle change in shape | Changing the shape and the tilt of the eye |
| Most often performed | With lower eyelid surgery or a facelift | As the operation the patient came for |
| Margin for error | Greater | Smaller — asymmetry shows |

## What It Cannot Do

Corner surgery raises the corner. It does not raise the brow, it does not open a hooded upper lid, and it does not lift the cheek — and the lifted, wide-awake look that most patients bring me a photograph of comes from all three, not from the canthus.

In a face where the tail of the brow has descended, a canthoplasty alone pulls at the corner of an eye that is still being pressed down from above. The result is a tilted eye under a heavy brow, which reads as strange rather than rested. In that face the honest answer is a [temporal lift](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/temporal-lift), sometimes with [eyelid surgery](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/blepharoplasty), and the corner is left alone. This is the single most useful thing on this page, and it is why I decline this operation more often than I perform it on its own.

## Who It Suits

Corner surgery suits someone whose outer canthus genuinely sits low or has become lax — from ageing, from previous eyelid surgery, or naturally — with a brow that is still in position. It also suits, as a supporting step rather than a goal, anyone having lower [eyelid surgery](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/blepharoplasty) whose lower lid is lax enough to need it, which is a large proportion of the patients I operate on.

It does not suit someone chasing a photograph of a different face. The shape of your eye is set by the bone behind it as much as by the tendon, and there is a limit to how far a corner can be moved before it stops looking like your eye. I tell you where that limit is on your own photographs rather than after surgery.

## How I Perform It

The corner is approached through a small incision at the lateral canthus, hidden in the crease line, or through the upper lid incision when eyelid surgery is being done in the same session. The tendon is exposed, tightened or released as the plan requires, and fixed to the periosteum inside the orbital rim at the height agreed with you. Fixing to the rim from inside is what keeps the corner from riding forward and gives the corner its natural contour against the globe.

On its own the operation is a day case under local anaesthesia with sedation. As part of eyelid surgery or a facelift it is performed under the same general anaesthetic, and adds very little time. What the day looks like is on [your surgery timeline](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/your-surgery-timeline).

## Risks, Plainly

This is a small operation with visible consequences when it goes wrong, and the risks belong on the page rather than in a consent form you read on the day.

Asymmetry between the two sides is the commonest, because millimetres show at the corner. Over-correction produces a tilted, artificial eye that is difficult to reverse. Under-correction relapses as the tightened tendon stretches. Rounding of the corner, a visible notch, or pulling of the lower lid away from the globe can follow when the lid is lax or the fixation is not secure. Dry eye and irritation are common early and usually settle. Scarring at the corner is normally inconspicuous but is not invisible in every skin type, and the corner is an area where a scar cannot be hidden in a crease as reliably as the upper lid.

Revision of a corner operated elsewhere is a defined part of my practice, and it is harder than the first operation.

## Results

A good result at the corner is one you cannot see as surgery: the eye slightly more almond, the corner sitting crisply against the globe, and the two sides matching. Every case in my [results gallery](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/results) lists the full combination of procedures performed, and the canthopexy and canthoplasty that appear there are almost always part of a larger plan — which is the honest picture of how this operation is used.

[See before & after results](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/results)

## Recovery

Swelling and bruising at the corner are obvious early and settle over the following weeks; the corner itself looks tight and slightly over-lifted at first, which is expected and is not the final position. Watering, dryness and a gritty feeling are normal while the lid settles. Sutures are removed early, and I ask you not to rub, pull or massage the corner at all until I have seen it.

The week-by-week course of facial recovery is in the [facelift recovery guide](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/facelift-recovery); the corner follows the same rhythm inside a larger plan.

## How Long It Lasts

A canthoplasty repositions and re-fixes tissue, so the correction is structural — but tendons stretch and faces go on ageing, and a corner that was lifted in a face whose brow later descends will not hold the look it had. I do not attach a number of years to it. What protects the result is choosing the right operation in the first place, which is the argument of the whole page.

## What Decides the Cost

There is no single price for almond eye surgery, because the name covers different operations: a canthopexy supporting a lower lid inside eyelid surgery, a canthoplasty as the operation itself, or a temporal lift when that is what the face needs. The cost follows the plan, the operating time and whether the procedure stands alone or sits inside a larger operation. After I have reviewed your photographs you receive an itemised quote. How quotes are built and compared is on the [cost page](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/deep-plane-facelift-cost).

## Frequently Asked Questions

**What is canthoplasty?**

Canthoplasty is surgery on the lateral canthal tendon — the anchor that holds the outer corner of the eye to the bone. The tendon is detached and re-fixed higher and slightly outward, which raises the corner and changes the shape and tilt of the eye. It is the operation behind most of what is sold as fox eye or almond eye surgery.

**What is the difference between canthopexy and canthoplasty?**

A canthopexy tightens and supports the tendon without detaching it; it is the lighter operation and is most often performed to support a lax lower lid during eyelid surgery. A canthoplasty detaches the tendon and re-fixes it in a new position, which is what genuinely changes the shape of the eye — and what carries the greater risk of asymmetry.

**Is fox eye surgery the same as almond eye surgery?**

Yes, in the sense that both are marketing names for the same idea: a lifted outer corner and a more almond-shaped eye. Neither name defines a single operation, which is why you should always ask what will be done anatomically before you compare prices.

**Is a fox eye lift the same as a thread lift?**

No. Threads placed under the skin can imitate the look briefly, and the effect is temporary because nothing has been repositioned or fixed. I do not perform thread lifts, and the reasoning is set out on my [thread lift page](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/thread-facelift).

**Will canthoplasty give me the lifted look I have seen in photographs?**

Sometimes, and often not on its own. The wide-awake, lifted look usually comes from the brow and the temple as much as from the corner of the eye. If your outer brow has descended, corner surgery alone pulls at an eye that is still being pressed from above — and a temporal lift is the honest answer. I tell you which of the two your own photographs show.

**Is canthoplasty safe?**

It is a small, precise operation with well-described risks: asymmetry, over- or under-correction, rounding or notching of the corner, pulling of the lower lid away from the eye, dry eye, and scarring at the corner. In experienced hands it is safe, and the most important safety step happens before surgery — deciding whether it is the right operation at all.

**Can almond eye surgery be reversed?**

Not simply. An over-corrected corner can be revised, but revision is harder than the first operation and does not always restore the original shape. That is the reason I plan conservatively and decline the operation when the anatomy does not support it.

**Can it be combined with eyelid surgery or a facelift?**

Yes — that is how most of it is performed in my practice. A canthopexy is very often part of lower [eyelid surgery](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/blepharoplasty), and both canthopexy and canthoplasty are routinely done within a facelift plan under the same anaesthetic.

**How long does canthoplasty last?**

The re-fixed tendon is a structural change, but tendons stretch and the face goes on ageing, so the look does not stay fixed for ever. I do not promise a number of years for any technique; what protects the result is choosing the correct operation at the start.

**How much does almond eye surgery cost in Turkey?**

There is no single price, because the name covers a canthopexy inside eyelid surgery, a canthoplasty as the operation itself, or a temporal lift where that is what the face needs. After I have reviewed your photographs you receive an itemised quote for your own plan.

## Start Your Assessment

**Send a photograph looking straight at the camera, with your face relaxed.** Over WhatsApp or through the form — you will receive my initial assessment of whether the corner of your eye is the problem or the brow above it is, a proposed plan, an expected length of stay and an itemised quote before anything is arranged.

[Request a personal review](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/contact) [See before & after results](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/results)

*Every enquiry is reviewed personally by Dr. Yilmaz; scheduling is handled by the patient coordination team.*

## About Dr. Muhsin Yilmaz

Written and medically reviewed by Muhsin Yilmaz, MD, FEBOPRAS — Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeon. Last reviewed: September 2026.

Dr. Muhsin Yilmaz is a **double board-certified plastic surgeon**, holding the FEBOPRAS diploma of the European Board of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery and the certification of the Turkish Board of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, and practises in Istanbul, Türkiye. His practice is focused on facial and neck rejuvenation, centred on the deep plane facelift — around 150 facelift operations per year, performed at Acıbadem Kartal Hospital. He is a member of TSPRAS and ISAPS, and is registered with the Turkish Ministry of Health for international health tourism. Read his [full profile](https://muhsinyilmaz.com/en/about-us).

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- Jelks GW, Jelks EB. The influence of orbital and eyelid anatomy on the palpebral aperture. *Clin Plast Surg.* 1991;18(1):183–195. [doi:10.1016/S0094-1298(20)30681-7](https://doi.org/10.1016/S0094-1298(20)30681-7)
- McCord CD, Codner MA, Hester TR. Redraping the inferior orbicularis arc. *Plast Reconstr Surg.* 1998;102(7):2471–2479. [doi:10.1097/00006534-199812000-00034](https://doi.org/10.1097/00006534-199812000-00034)