A Stye is the infection of the follicle of an eyelash or of a sebaceous gland of an eyelid. It is often the result of a staphylococcal infection or by blocking of an oil gland at the bottom of the eyelash. They are usually triggered by rubbing of the eyes, lack of sleep, partial removal of eye make-up, using expired cosmetics, stress, and even hormonal changes. In addition, unnecessary oil discharge from the gland amplifies the possibility of this infection. They are also contagious. Therefore, in order to avoid distribution of the bacterial infection among individuals, sharing of washcloths or face towels shall be prohibited. This disease is commonly experienced by people of all ages predominantly in infants. If treated, this infection will last up to 4 days but if it is not treated then the infection could last up to 2 weeks.
There are several symptoms that detects its’ infection. These are swelling of the eyelid, either at the top or at the bottom, redness, tenderness to touch, itchy, will experience discomfort during blinking, and constant eye tearing. Upon detection of infection, apply a warm compress 4 to six times on the affected eye for 15 minutes. This will help deplete and hasten the curing procedure. With tap water and soap or shampoo, gently scrub the eyelid. Use nonirritating soap or shampoo. Close your eyes upon scrubbing to avoid eye injury. Do not squeeze or puncture the inflamed area to avoid serious infection that could spread to the neighboring tissues. Eye make-up, eye lotions and even the usage of contact lenses should also be avoided as it might infect your cornea.
If you experience these kinds of symptoms; eye is engorged, redness materializes around the entire eye, eyelashes falls out, bleeding, and will experience fever almost 40 C, contact your ophthalmologist right away or go to a hospital’s emergency room. In the event of experiencing irritation, some medical professionals will use a needle to prick the swelling in order for the pus to drain. Once it bursts, immediate care must be taken to cleanse the injury to avoid reinfection. If it does not respond to any type of treatment or therapies, then surgery will take place as a last resort.
As part of medical treatment, warm compress is highly recommended. Pain killers and antibiotics may be given or suggested. To patients who experience styes that keeps on recurring or who experience multiple styes, oral antibiotics are usually prescribed. If infection has spread, intravenous (IV) antibiotics are given.
To prevent this type of infection, proper hygiene should be observed such as washing of hands and keeping their eye tools clean. In addition, it is highly recommended by ophthalmologists against sharing of cosmetics. This is one way of spreading the infection. Secondly, women are also advised to clean their eye thoroughly of make-up before going to sleep and to dispose expired cosmetics such as eye make-up. If we keep these preventions in mind, the chances of getting this infection will be avoided.
