The stye is a lump on the eyelid caused by an inflamed sebaceous gland that is located on the edge of the eyelid and can be external if it is located on the outside or inside.

External stye: starts at the base of the eyelash. Most are caused by an infection in the hair follicle.

Internal stye: grows inside the eyelid. Most are caused by an infection in the oil-producing gland of the eyelid.

Another case of a stye is if you suffer from blepharitis, an inflammation of the eyelid that affects the production of eyelashes or tears.

The main causes that can cause the appearance of a stye are: Staphylococcus infection, this is caused by bacteria that live on the skin or in the nose and that in normal situations are harmless.

Chronic inflammation of the eyelid: it is an inflammation of the edge of the eyelid that, generally, affects both eyes and is the cause of irritation and redness.

Symptoms:

  • A small yellow spot in the center of the bump on the eyelid.
  • Watery eyes.
  • Swelling of the eyelids.
  • Eyelid pain.
  • Legañas around the eyelids.
  • Sensitivity to light.
  • Irritating sensation of having a foreign body inside the eye.

In most cases, a stye does not require specific treatment. A stye usually goes away on its own.

For a persistent stye, your doctor may recommend treatments such as the following: antibiotics, antibiotic drops, or a topical antibiotic ointment to put on your eyelid.

If the stye does not go away, the doctor may make a small cut in the stye to drain the pus under local anesthesia.If the stye keeps coming back over and over again, the specialist may do a biopsy. This helps your ophthalmologist check to see if you have a more serious eye problem.

Recommendation: It is important not to try to remove the stye or any other protuberance from the eye as it can cause more complications. The infection should be allowed to subside on its own and, above all, contact lenses should not be worn or make-up applied to that eye until it has healed.

If it has not improved in 48 hours, a doctor should be contacted.