Sty (cont.)
IN THIS ARTICLE
- Stye Overview
- Stye Causes
- Stye Symptoms
- When to Seek Medical Care
- Questions to Ask the Doctor
- Exams and Tests
- Stye Treatment
- Self-Care at Home
- Medical Treatment
- Medications
- Surgery
- Next Steps
- Follow-up
- Prevention
- Outlook
- For More Information
- Web Links
- Multimedia
- Synonyms and Keywords
- Authors and Editors
- Viewer Comments: Sty (Stye) - Describe Your Experience
Stye Treatment
Self-Care at Home
Most styes go away on their own in five to seven days.
- Apply warm compresses four to six times a day for about 15 minutes at a time to help the drainage. Keep your eyes closed.
- Gently scrub the eyelid with tap water or with a mild, nonirritating soap or shampoo (such as baby shampoo). This may help with drainage. Close your eyes as you scrub so you do not injure your eyes.
- Do not squeeze or puncture the stye. A more serious infection may occur as a result.
- Discontinue the use of eye makeup as well as eye lotions and creams because they may be infected.
- Discontinue wearing your contact lenses because the stye may cause an infection to spread to your cornea with the continued use of your contact lenses.
Next: Medical Treatment »
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Hordeolum and Stye »
A hordeolum (ie, stye) is a localized infection or inflammation of the eyelid margin involving hair follicles of the eyelashes (ie, external hordeolum) or meibomian glands (ie, internal hordeolum).
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