One eye bigger than the other.

[Jamie187]

Hi, my left eye is noticeably smaller than my right eye when not having any facial expressions, and when I eat or drop my jaw, my left eye becomes ALOT bigger and becomes bigger than the right eye, and stands out, while my right eye stays the same throughout seems as if my left eye is the problem. Should I be worried? and is there any things I can try do to try prevent it?

Thanks in advance.

[Sandy Feldman, MD, MS]

Dear Jamie187,

This may be the result of a phenomenon in which muscles of the mouth move, they may be connected to the eyelid resulting in opening of the eyelid.  Usually, the phenomenom is the reverse. I would definitely recommend that you seek the care of an eyeMD to determine the cause.

Dr. Feldman

Sandy T. Feldman, M.D., M.S.
ClearView Eye and Laser Medical Center
San Diego, California

[Michael J Kutryb, MD]

I have seen Jaw Wink Ptosis where the eyelid closes somewhat when the person chews, but I have not seen the situation where the eye looks larger when chewing.  You appear to have some degree of asymmetry, but the exact thing that is asymmetric is unclear - the eyelid height, size of actual eyeball itself, amount of protrusion of eyeball?  So you can see that there are more questions than answers here.  Clearly you need to see an ophthalmologist to find out what the situation is and what is causing it.  It could be due to something like thyroid eye disease or a droopy eyelid among other things.  Good Luck.

MJK MD