Stye treatment, diagnosis & prescriptions

Yes, a Maple doctor can diagnose and treat a stye. They’ll ask you some questions about your symptoms, and ask to see your eye. From there, they can give advice on next steps and any necessary medication.

A stye is an infection on the eyelid, near or on the lash line, that causes mildly painful red lumps resembling a pimple.

The appearance of a stye might follow a period of time where dead skin, oil or dirt has been left to build up on your lash line, causing the tiny holes that make up your eyelash follicles to become clogged.

The common symptoms of a stye include:

• An itchy, sore eye
• Swollen eyelid
• Excessive eye-watering

Styes usually heal themselves by breaking open and draining after around 3 days. Stye complications are unusual, but if swelling spreads to other areas of the face or the stye doesn’t begin to heal after a few days, let your doctor know right away.

Styes are caused by a bacterial infection in the follicles at the base of the eyelash. You’re more likely to get a stye if you:

• Touch your eyes with dirty hands
• Sleep with makeup on
• Put in contacts without cleaning your hands first
• Are diabetic
• Have rosacea (a skin condition that causes redness in the face)
• Have blepharitis (chronically inflammation along the eye line)
• Have had a stye before
• Have high cholesterol

Stye treatment might consist of at-home remedies, like a warm compress held over the eye to reduce swelling and open up the pores, encouraging the release of trapped bacteria. Regularly cleaning the area with soap and water will also help.

Avoid touching the stye or squeezing it unnecessarily, as the pus released could cause the infection to spread. To control the bacteria, Polysporin or other topical antibiotic ointments can help with stye treatment.

If you’re wondering when to see a doctor, a stye that remains the same size, or continues to grow for more than a few days may be cause for further medical attention. A doctor may then give a prescription for stye medication, which is sometimes an antibiotic taken orally.