Have you ever had one of those red and tender lumps that can form in the upper or lower eyelid area? While the lump is benign in nature, irritation may occur because of this condition. This eye disease is called chalazion.
When you have this eye condition, the ducts draining the meibomian glands are impeded. The meibomian glands produce the oily fluid that forms part of your tear film.
Symptoms of Chalazion Eye Disease
This eye disease is usually related to dryness in portions of the cornea.
It may also be characterized by swelling in the margin in the eyelids, which might result in irritation and itchiness characterized by constant blinking.
Chalazion will usually not affect your vision, though it can cause discomfort and irritation. These lesions can be found in either the upper or lower lids.
• This eye disease is generally painless, but it may slowly grow when left untreated.
• There may be times when this eye disease will press on your eyeball, which will result in astigmatism.
• It may also cause lazy eye in youngsters.
• In extremely rare cases, chalazion may get infected, which means that you may have a hard time opening your eyes.
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Treatment of Chalazion Eye Disease
Home Remedies
The key here is to relieve the swelling by releasing the contents of the chalazion. This can be done by massaging the affected area with your fingers. If desired, cotton tips can also be used. Hot compress can also be placed for five minutes on the eyelid. Do this up to three times a day. This will soften the material that has collected on the meibomian glands, thus relieving the draining ducts of its hindrance. You will notice an improvement in a few weeks time.
Mibo Thermoflo®
This novel procedure is now available at The Eye Practice to treat chalazion in a non-invasive way. More on Mibo Thermoflo®.
Antibiotics
Topical antibiotic ointments may be used if the inflammation, redness or discharge is significant but do not expect any significant improvement. Topical antibiotics (eye drops) are not particularly useful as they are not able to penetrate through the eyelid skin. If the chalazion is infected this is called a hordeolum or commonly known as a stye – oral antibiotics are very useful in these cases.
Make an appointment and we will assess and then recommend the best possible treatment for this annoying condition.
• Steroid Injections
If the above-mentioned treatments still fail to treat chalazion, check with your eye doctor for other alternatives. The eye doctor may deem it necessary to inject you with intralesional steroids.
• Surgery
A surgical procedure to remove chalazion is usually safe. General anesthesia is normally not used in this outpatient procedure. Sutures are not necessary, though your eyes must remain padded for six hours. Bleeding usually occurs after surgery, though by simply applying pressure into the area, the problem will resolve itself. Possible eyelid infection can be treated with oral antibiotics.
Keep your eyes dry for at least a week after the surgery. Clean the affected eye by using a tissue soaked in boiled water that has cooled down.
Follow-up consultations must be conducted to ensure that no complication has arisen after the procedure. If you notice any infection or swelling and pain in the affected eyelid area, go to your eye doctor immediately. Antibiotic ointments may be prescribed.
Keep in mind however that this disease may recur and additional surgery may be necessary. Those with other eye conditions like blepharitis or rosacea have a higher chance of recurrence. It is imperative to treat the blepharitis and or rosacea aggressively to avoid further chalazions.
