Stye: Overview, Causes, Symptoms, Treatment & Preventive Measures

Similar to an acne pimple, a stye forms when the tiny oil gland near your eyelashes gets blocked and infected. This is a common eye condition worldwide and can be managed easily at home without medical interventions.

Keep reading to learn the meaning of stye, its causes, symptoms and how to treat one.

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What Is a Stye?

A stye or hordeolum is a pimple or abscess that may form on the upper or lower eyelid. Further, this condition can happen due to the trapped dead skin cells and germs on the edge of the eyelid.

Based on the site of occurrence, a stye in the eye is classified into two types:

1. External Stye

An external stye is commonly yellow and filled with pus. In addition, it is painful when touched. This condition occurs along the outer edge of the eyelid in the following areas:

Sebaceous Gland
Eyelash Follicle
Apocrine Gland

2. Internal Stye

It develops inside the eyelid due to an infection in the meibomian gland. This gland produces a secretion to cover the eyes. As the gland pushes on the eye while growing, an internal stye is more painful than the external one.

What Causes a Stye?

Mostly, styes do not occur for any reason. However, if your eyelids are itchy or you rub them a lot, the chances of an external stye are high.

Commonly, the bacteria known as Staphylococcus aureus that lives on the surface of the eyelid causes stye. It is a common germ generally found on healthy skin and is harmless.

Nonetheless, this bacteria can occasionally get into your skin, and when overproduced, it blocks the tiny oil duct near the eyelashes and causes inflammation.

What Are the Signs and Symptoms of a Stye?

The tell-tale symptoms of a stye are:

Swollen eyelid
Photosensitivity
A painful red bump along the eyelid edge near your lashes
Crusting along your eyelid
Yellowish discharge
Itching
Watery eyes
Soreness
Feeling like there is something in the eye

What Are the Risk Factors for Developing a Stye?

Anyone can get a stye. However, people with the following conditions have higher chances.

Had a stye before
Have dry skin
Suffering from skin conditions, such as seborrheic dermatitis or dandruff, acne rosacea
Have high lipid levels or bad cholesterol
Undergoing hormonal changes
Diabetic patients

How Is a Stye Treated?

Though styes generally recover within one to two weeks, you can speed up the healing process with the followings:

1. Warm Compress

This is the most effective treatment of an internal stye. The warmth helps in liquefying the hardened material inside a stye. It also draws the pus to the surface in case of an external stye. This helps unclog the gland, drains pus and oil, and heals a stye naturally.

Step 1: Get a clean washcloth and wet it with warm water as per your tolerance.

Step 2: Wring this cloth, ensure it is damp and gently place it over your eye for five to ten minutes.

Repeat this three to four times a day for better results. However, try to avoid squeezing out the water on your stye.

Alternatively, you can do it with a warm tea bag.

Step 1: Add a tea bag to boiled water and let it steep for a minute.

Step 2: Wait till the tea bag cools enough for your eyes and place it over your eyes.

Repeat this twice a day for effective results. You can use black tea as it has antibacterial properties and reduces swelling fast.

2. Clean the Eyelids

While suffering from a stye, washing the eyelid with water and a mild soap is ideal. Ensure that the soap is non-irritating and hypoallergenic, as the skin around the eyes is much thinner than the rest of the face.

Step 1: Mix some mild soap or baby shampoo with lukewarm water.

Step 2: Take a cotton swab or washcloth and put it inside the mixture.

Step 3: Wring off the excess water and gently wipe off the eyelids.

Repeat this process every day till the stye is gone. You can also use the saline solution to break down the bacterial membranes and promote drainage.

3. Massage the Area

Massaging the area promotes drainage and fast recovery from a stye.

Step 1: Massage the affected eye gently with clean hands.

Step 2: Once the stye drains, keep the area dry; Stop in case massaging hurts the area.

4. Medical Treatment

Seek professional help if the condition persists after these home remedies.

Doctors may prescribe antibiotic ointment for the stye or antibiotic eye drops.
You may undergo a small incision under local anesthesia to drain the stye.
Doctors also give steroid injections to get rid of the swollen eyelid.

Apart from these, they also provide oral antibiotics if the area around your eyes is infected or after an incision to drain an internal stye.

How to Prevent Aggravating Stye?

Getting a stye once may result in another one. This is due to a large number of bacteria within the pus. Practise the following precautionary steps to prevent a stye.

1. Avoid Wearing Makeup

Makeup will irritate your eye and thus delays the healing process of a stye. Moreover, if you continue using makeup under such circumstances, its bacteria will get transferred to your makeup and tools, which will infect your other eye too.

In addition, it is essential to make the makeup brushes clean and get rid of the products that are already three months old.

2. Do Not Wear Contact Lenses

If suffering from a stye, switch back to glasses till recovered. The bacteria of a stye will get onto your contact lenses and spread the infection. Additionally, you can change your contact lenses to avoid reinfection.

3. Avoid Sharing Towels

If someone is suffering from a stye, avoid using their towel. Though not contagious with casual contact, the concentrated bacteria on the towel can spread a bacterial infection.

4. Do Not Pop or Squeeze the Stye

Squeezing a stye will release the pus, which will spread the infection. It is ideal for visiting a doctor if suffering from an internal stye. Further, try to avoid touching your eyes as this may accelerate the irritation.

A stye is rarely a serious medical condition. With these practices mentioned above, the healing process may take up to seven to ten days.

However, you must visit a doctor if your stye is internal, bigger in size, your eye is swollen shut, blisters forming around your eyelids, or its drainage contains blood, as this may trigger underlying eye conditions like Blepharitis, Conjunctivitis and Orbital cellulitis.

Frequently Asked Questions

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How often do I need to change the pillowcase while suffering from a stye?

Generally, you do not need to change your pillowcase frequently if you are suffering from a stye. However, if a stye is oozing, it will contaminate your pillowcases, towels and bed sheets. At such times, it is best not to share these with anyone.

Can I go to work with a stye?

Yes, a stye is not contagious. Therefore, you will not spread the bacteria at your workplace.

Can a stye result in a chalazion?

If a stye does not cure, it may turn into a chalazion, a red and painless lump or cyst on your eyelid.