A stye develops when the small oil glands in your child's eyelid becomes blocked. This causes swelling and redness on the eyelid.
The aim of treatment is to unblock the oil glands and keep your child's eyelids clean. This should help the swelling and redness to go away.
Treatment includes warm compresses, eyelid massage and cleaning. You can do this at home.
Styes usually heal in 6 weeks to 6 months.
Place a hot flannel, a heated wheat bag or a heated eye mask (usually available at pharmacies) on your child's closed eyelids for 10 minutes. The temperature should be reasonably warm, about 42 degrees. Test the temperature on the skin on the insude of your wrist. Make sure it's not too hot.
After heating, massage your child's eyelids. Use the tip or side of your finger. Firmly push the skin of your child's eyelids close to their eyelashes. It shouldn't be painful. Massaging helps unblock the oil glands by melting the oil and squeezing it out. Do this twice a day until the stye goes away.
Make a solution using 1 part baby shampoo and 10 parts water. Dip a clean cotton bud in a small amount of the solution. Use it to clean away any crusts on the eyelashes. Rub along the eyelids. Use a clean cotton bud for each eyelid. Repeat this process twice a day. Pour a fresh amount of solution into a small container each time.
If you follow these steps, most styes will get better.
See your child's doctor if you have followed the steps for treatment and:
Adapted from Stye | Health Navigator [1]
Images
Photo of a stye in a child's eye is from 123rf.com
Diagram showing eyelid massage by Kenny Wu, Optometrist, Eye Institute, Auckland.
This page last reviewed 25 July 2022.
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Links
[1] https://www.healthnavigator.org.nz/health-a-z/s/stye/
[2] https://www.kidshealth.org.nz/contact?from=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.kidshealth.org.nz%2Fprint%2F2715%3Flanguage%3Dzh-hans