What is Chalazion (Stye)?
A chalazion is a long-term inflammation of the eyelid, typically not caused by an infection. They generally grow slowly and aren’t usually painful. A deeper chalazion is due to inflammation of an oil gland in the eyelid, called a meibomian gland. A more superficial chalazion, or one closer to the surface of the skin, is due to inflammation of a smaller eyelid gland known as a Zeis gland. Chalazia are typically harmless and often go away on their own. Still, they can cause long-term problems in some cases. If someone frequently gets chalazia, doctors should check to ensure it’s not a sign of cancer.
What Causes Chalazion (Stye)?
Chalazia are caused when the oil-producing glands in your eyelids become inflamed and blocked. Sometimes, an infection can cause this inflammation or blockage, leading to a chalazion, which is essentially a swelling caused by inflammation.
Risk Factors and Frequency for Chalazion (Stye)
Chalazia is a fairly common condition, but specific statistics on how many people it affects in the US or worldwide are not known. What we do know is that it appears to impact both men and women equally. Additionally, chalazia is more commonly seen in adults, particularly between the ages of 30 and 50.
Signs and Symptoms of Chalazion (Stye)
A chalazion is a kind of eyelid swelling that usually isn’t painful. People might not notice it for weeks or even months. However, sometimes a chalazion can affect vision or cause discomfort. It could also become inflamed, painful, or infected. People who have had a chalazion once may get them again, as these swellings often come back in people who are prone to them.
Doctors usually diagnose a chalazion by examining it and asking questions about it. They will want to know about any changes in your vision, recent infections, antibiotics, skin infections, injuries to your eyelid, exposure to toxic substances, a weakened immune system, a history of cancer, or a history of exposure to tuberculosis. They will also ask about the character of the swelling, how quickly it appeared, whether anything makes it worse or better, any other symptoms, and whether you’ve had similar swellings in the past. They might also need to know whether you’ve recently traveled to places where tuberculosis and leishmaniasis are common, as these diseases can cause symptoms similar to a chalazion.
Some symptoms might suggest a different condition, such as sudden changes in vision, eye pain that keeps coming back in the same place, a fever, trouble moving the eye, and swelling across the eyelid or face.
When a chalazion is physically examined, doctors typically find a bump that can be felt but usually isn’t tender, doesn’t move when touched, and doesn’t look red. They’ll expect the bump to be smaller than 1 cm and more often than not, it’s on the upper lid. Even though multiple lesions could be there, usually only one is present at a time. Chalazia are typically deeper in the lid than a hordeolum. In contrast, hordeolums (sometimes called styes) are often painful, nearer to the surface, and are located around an eyelash. Doctors often turn the eyelid inside out during the examination to check for an internal chalazion. Basic vision tests should also be performed, and doctors can use a special dye to look for any scratches on the cornea if there is pain in the eyeball.
Testing for Chalazion (Stye)
The detection of a medical condition known as a chalazion, which is a cyst or lump in your eyelid, is typically made by your doctor examining you and asking about your symptoms. If your symptoms and the doctor’s physical exam seem to suggest this condition accurately, they may not require you to have any further testing or examinations. However, should there be any uncertainty about your diagnosis or if they suspect a different condition, your doctor may suggest a biopsy, which is a test where they take a small sample of the lump tissue to examine it more closely in the lab.
Treatment Options for Chalazion (Stye)
Trying to manage chalazia, a type of lump that can form in your eyelids, usually starts with a gentle approach. This can involve warming up the affected eyelid with a warm compress for 15 minutes, a few times a day. Massaging the eyelid and washing it with baby shampoo can also help. With these simple steps, most chalazia will disappear within a month.
If, after a month of these approaches, you still have symptoms, you should see an eye specialist. There are isolated cases where the lump moves around with this type of treatment, and in these cases, you’ll need to see an eye specialist for surgery. Larger lumps, especially in the central part of your eyelid, might cause complications, so it could be important to see a specialist sooner for surgical treatment.
You typically won’t need antibiotics because chalazia is an inflammation, not an infection. But if there’s a possibility that an infection is associated with your chalazia, the doctor may prescribe antibiotics. However, if no infection is observed, steroid injections might be used to reduce inflammation.
Persistent lumps that don’t go away, despite receiving treatment, will require a surgical approach. For smaller lumps, a simple scraping and separating process is used, while larger lumps may need a larger portion of the eyelid to be removed. If your chalazia keep coming back, a biopsy might be done to check if it’s not a more serious condition called sebaceous cell carcinoma, which is a rare type of eyelid cancer.
What else can Chalazion (Stye) be?
While it’s less common, cancerous growths (neoplasms) are something to keep in mind especially for recurring eyelid bumps (chalazia) in older people. Certain types of skin cancers such as sebaceous cell, basal cell, and squamous cell should always be checked for through a biopsy if there’s a worry their presence. There are also infections like blepharitis, dacryocystitis, both types of herpes, molluscum contagiosum, Leishmaniasis, and cellulitis that should be considered and treated if necessary. Lastly, harmless growths such as papillomas, hordeolum, juvenile xanthogranuloma, and xanthelasma should be taken into account if the bump doesn’t look like your typical chalazion.
What to expect with Chalazion (Stye)
The outlook for patients with chalazia is generally excellent. This condition often gets better with simple care approaches.
Possible Complications When Diagnosed with Chalazion (Stye)
If chalazia go untreated, they can increase the chances of a person getting preseptal cellulitis, an eye infection. This condition can further cause damage to the eyelid. Large chalazia that have developed at the center can disrupt vision as it can press against the cornea, which is the clear, front surface of the eye. Eye chalazia, particularly ones located on the upper eyelid, could lead to astigmatism, a common vision problem caused due to an error in the way the eye shapes an image, and corneal aberrations, especially on the peripheral cornea, the outer edge of the eye’s clear, front surface. Those risks significantly increase if the chalazia are bigger than 5 mm. That’s why it’s worth considering to excise or remove these lesions.
Possible Outcomes of Untreated Chalazia:
- Increased chance of developing preseptal cellulitis
- Damage to the eyelid
- Visual disturbances due to the pressure exerted on the cornea
- Increased chances of astigmatism and corneal aberrations, especially if chalazion is on the upper eyelid
- Greater the size of chalazion (more than 5 mm), the higher the risks
Preventing Chalazion (Stye)
There isn’t a specific way to prevent chalazia, a type of lump that can develop in the eyelid. However, it’s suggested that maintaining eyelid cleanliness and using warm compresses may help in reducing the risk of getting them.