Mix warm water with a gentle cleanser, like baby shampoo. Dip a clean, soft cloth or cotton swab in the warm cleanser and water mixture. Press the cloth against your closed eye for a few minutes to loosen crusts. This can also help keep your oil glands from clogging.
Mix warm water and a small amount of non-irritating (baby) shampoo or a commercially prepared lid scrub solution recommended by a doctor of optometry. Using a clean cloth (a different one for each eye), rub the solution back and forth across the eyelashes and the edge of the closed eyelid. Rinse with clear water.
Blepharitis is controlled by cleaning the eyelids twice a day and may also require drops and/or ointment.
Keep your eyes as clean as possible. Make sure you remove all eye makeup before you go to sleep. Don't use eyeliner on the back edges of your eyelids behind the eyelashes. If you are already suffering from blepharitis, avoid using makeup until it has completely cleared.
Blepharitis tends to be worse in cold windy weather, air-conditioned environments, prolonged computer usage, sleep deprivation, contact lens wear, and with general dehydration. It also tends to be worse in the presence of active skin disease e.g. acne rosacea, seborrhoeic dermatitis.
What causes blepharitis? Most of the time, blepharitis happens because you have too much bacteria on your eyelids at the base of your eyelashes. Having bacteria on your skin is normal, but too much bacteria can cause problems. You can also get blepharitis if the oil glands in your eyelids get clogged or irritated.
These include processed or fried foods, sugar, white flour and fizzy drinks tends to aggravate the condition. I have also found that a varied diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables and high intake of natural Omega-3 containing foods helps reduce flare-ups.
You can't cure blepharitis. However, it can be treated and controlled through proper eyelid hygiene. Left untreated, blepharitis may lead to other more serious eye conditions, including corneal problems, which may be significant.
The recommended regime is four times a day for two weeks, then twice a day for a month, and twice a week after that. If you are using a simple hot compress with a face flannel then warm saltwater soaks are preferred as this is more isotonic and thus more comfortable and less likely to wrinkle the eyelid skin.
1. Avenova: made with hypochlorus acid, this eyelid cleanser can be used if you had been diagnosed with blepharitis (inflammation of the eyelids), have an acute infection or have severe ocular rosacea.
If you have been diagnosed with blepharitis, these wipes can help reduce biofilm and debris to optimize the eye surface and keep it clean.
Moist heat is very helpful when it comes to eye lid hygiene. Although it is somewhat helpful to try to run warm water over the eyelids during a shower, hot compresses are more effective. A wet wash cloth can be micro waved for about 30 seconds to bring it up to temperature. (Be careful that you don't get it too hot.)
Using a dandruff shampoo might relieve your blepharitis signs and symptoms. Using tea tree oil shampoo on your eyelids daily might help deal with mites. Or try gently scrubbing your lids once a week with 50% tea tree oil, which is available over-the-counter.
Other dermatological manifestations of vitamin A deficiency include blepharitis [16], noted in our first patient, and cheilitis.
It may take up to six weeks for the symptoms of blepharitis to improve once the eyelid cleaning regime has begun, so perseverance is essential. Eyelid cleaning should be performed twice a day, morning and evening, until the symptoms have settled.
BlephEx® is a new, in-office procedure that allows your doctor to take an active role in treating dry eye and blepharitis. BlephEx® removes excess bacteria, biofilm and bacterial toxins, the main causes of inflammatory dry eye and lid disease.
Beyond causing patient discomfort, the presence of blepharitis can affect the outcomes of cataract and refractive surgery. And, as the prevalence of blepharitis increases with age, clinicians can expect to see a growing number of cases in the coming years.
We sometimes recommend special nutritional supplements containing certain essential fatty acids to decrease dry eye symptoms. Drinking more water may also relieve symptoms.
Exposure to sunlight, drinking excess alcohol, or caffeinated beverages, eating a lot of greasy foods can all be factors in making this condition worse. These factors should be limited or completely avoided.
Although the etiology of blepharitis is multitudinal, individuals who are predisposed can be triggered by certain factors such as stress. Stress behaviors are important to recognize; one may have difficulty concentrating, revert to bad habits, and fall into unhealthy eating habits.
Stage 1: Early biofilm formation with swelling of the lash follicles, lash misdirection. Stage 2: Inflammation of meibomian glands with plugging. Stage 3: Lacrimal involvement leads to aqueous insufficiency with little to no tear lake. Stage 4: Chronic inflammation leads to a breakdown in the structural .
Sometimes, this is caused by an excess of bacteria or clogged oil glands at the base of the eyelashes. Other times, it may result from an over-population of microscopic mites living inside the eyelash follicles. Known as Demodex, these bugs are also associated with the skin condition rosacea.