It feels like something is constantly rubbing against your eye. You look in the mirror and see a small red bump on your eyelid near your eyelashes. You have a hordeolum, better known as a stye. Our therapeutic optometrist, Dr. Greg Wacasey in Longview would like to look at what you need to know about styes.
The cause of your stye depends on which kind of stye you have. In the example we mentioned, you have an external stye. This is caused by infection of the eyelids. The other kind of stye is the internal stye, caused by an infection in a gland inside of your inner eyelid.
Many styes do go away without you needing to see an eye doctor, even internal styes. You should still receive a few home treatments to help ease your pain.
A clean washcloth in warm water on your closed eye will help soothe the irritation. Keep the washcloth on for 15 minutes or until the compress cools off. You can also try a cooled, but still warm, green tea bag, as long as the green tea does not have any added ingredients or flavorings like lemon. Green tea does have some minor antibacterial properties. You also want to keep your eyelids clean.
Even though it looks like a pimple, do not try to pop it. You could damage your eye. You should also stop wearing contacts and using eye makeup until you are healed.
You need professional eye care right away if your stye does not go away in two weeks, if it leaks pus or blood if a blister appears, if the pain gets worse over time, if you’re having problems seeing out the affected eye, or if your eyelids feel hot. You should also see an eye doctor if the styes are a recurring problem, even if they go away by themselves.
If you have questions about your style or your child’s stye and are considering treatment, contact Dr. Wacasey, Therapeutic Optometrist. Call Dr. Wacasey today at (903) 663-1550 or reach us through our website by using our online contact form.