Blepharitis

Blepharitis is a contraindication for most cornea-based refractive surgery techniques, including conventional or wavefront Lasik, All-Laser Lasik, PRK, LASEK, and Epi-Lasik, unless the blepharitis is very mild and/or is fully under control. Blepharitis is a consideration for CK, P-IOL, and RLE, but does not seem to be as critical.

Blepharitis is an inflammation of the eyelids. It is a very common condition that can be associated with a low grade bacterial infection (staphylococcal blepharitis) or a generalized skin condition (seborrheic blepharitis). Blepharitis is seen most commonly in adults.

Factors believed to contribute to blepharitis include abnormalities in oil gland function and an alteration in bacterial colonies that normally live on the skin. Blepharitis is not contagious and cannot be passed from one person to another.

People with blepharitis will have red eyelid margins and persistent ocular irritation, however there are other ocular problems that will have similar symptoms. An ophthalmologist can help definitively diagnose this condition by careful examination of the eyelid margins. In some instances, dry eye symptoms and underlying skin conditions can be associated with blepharitis.

The inflammation around the eyelids characteristic of blepharitis can be improved by increased lid hygiene. Gently scrubbing the eyelid margins with baby shampoo diluted with water can decrease the amount of flaking skin and oil in the area. A cotton tipped applicator or a washcloth wrapped around the index finger can be used to apply the shampoo.

Warm compresses applied to the lids for several minutes a day can also be helpful. In some select cases, your ophthalmologist may also choose to prescribe an antibiotic ointment or drop. Restasis is a cyclosporine eye drop that has been shown to be very helpful for blepharitis.

Blepharitis is a chronic condition that often requires long-term treatment in order to prevent exacerbations.

If you are ready to choose a doctor to be evaluated for conventional or custom wavefront Lasik, All-Laser Lasik, PRK, LASEK, Epi-Lasik, NearVision CK, RLE, or any refractive surgery procedure, we highly recommend you consider a doctor who has been evaluated and certified by the USAEyes nonprofit organization. Locate a USAEyes Evaluated & Certified Lasik Laser Eye Surgery Doctor.

If this article did not fully answer your questions, use our free Ask Lasik Expert patient forum.

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Current Blepharitis and Lasik Medical Journal News...

Cutaneous leishmaniasis of the lid: a report of nine cases.

Related Articles

Cutaneous leishmaniasis of the lid: a report of nine cases.

Korean J Ophthalmol. 2010 Feb;24(1):40-3

Authors: Yaghoobi R, Maraghi S, Bagherani N, Rafiei A

Leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease caused by Leishmania species and is classified into three forms; cutaneous, mucocutaneous, and visceral. The eyelid is a rare site involved by leishmaniasis and only makes up 2.5% of cases with cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL). Although CL can affect both upper and lower lids on either their outer or inner aspects, the lateral canthus is most often affected. The most common aspect of lid leishmaniasis is chalazion-like lesions but ulcerous, phagedenic, cancer-like forms, and unilateral chronic granulomatous blepharitis may be observed. When the lid is involved, the disease is usually self-limiting; healing usually takes up to one year, hence early diagnosis and treatment are important. The diagnosis is based on a high index of suspicion regarding the endemicity of the disease in the region. Response to treatment in lid CL cases is quite satisfactory. In this article, we report nine cases of lid leishmaniasis with satisfactory responses to intralesional meglumine antimoniate.

PMID: 20157413 [PubMed - in process]