A stye is an infection in small oil glands at the root of an eyelash or in the eyelids. This causes a tender red lump on or near the edge of the eyelid. Styes may break open and drain a tiny amount of pus. They usually are not contagious.
Styes almost always clear up on their own in a few days or weeks. Putting a warm, wet compress on the area can help it open and heal. A stye rarely needs antibiotics or other treatment.
After your child has had a stye, they're more likely to get another stye.
A stye is an infection in the tiny oil glands that surround the base of each eyelash along the edge of the eyelid. A stye begins as a red, tender bump, and looks like a small pimple.
A stye usually comes to a head (clear or yellow fluid collects in the stye) in about 3 days, after which it breaks open and drains and heals in about a week. Though the cause of a stye is often unknown, it can develop from rubbing the eyes or using products near the eyelid that can irritate the eye, both of which can transfer bacteria to the skin and cause infection.
Usually, home treatment is all that is needed to treat a stye. This includes not wearing eye makeup or contact lenses; letting the stye break open by itself; applying warm, wet compresses to the eye area; and using nonprescription medicines.
A stye usually starts as a red bump that looks like a pimple along the edge of the eyelid. The eyelid may become swollen and painful, and the eye may water. A chalazion starts as a firm lump or cyst under the skin of the eyelid. Unlike styes, chalazia often don't hurt.
Home treatment is all that is needed for most styes and chalazia.
If a stye is not getting better with home treatment, talk to your doctor. You may need a prescription for antibiotic eye ointment or eyedrops. You may need to take antibiotic pills if infection has spread to the eyelid or eye.
If a stye gets very large, the doctor may need to pierce (lance) it so it can drain and heal. Do not try to lance it yourself.
If a chalazion does not go away or if it gets worse, a doctor may recommend an injection of steroid medicine or surgery to remove it.
Here are some things you can do to prevent styes and chalazia.
Doctors diagnose these problems by closely examining the eyelid. It may be hard to tell the difference between a stye and a chalazion. If there is a hard lump inside the eyelid, the doctor will probably diagnose it as a chalazion.
Styes are caused by a bacterial infection. Usually the bacteria grow in the root (follicle) of an eyelash. An internal hordeolum is caused by infection in one of the tiny oil glands inside the eyelid.
A chalazion forms when an oil gland in the eyelid becomes blocked. If an internal hordeolum doesn't drain and heal, it can turn into a chalazion.
Styes and chalazia are lumps in or along the edge of an eyelid. They may be painful or annoying, but they are rarely serious. Most will go away on their own without treatment.
Styes and chalazia may be related to blepharitis, a common problem that causes inflammation of the eyelids.
Call your doctor now or seek immediate medical care if:
Watch closely for changes in your child's health, and be sure to contact your doctor if:
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