What is blepharitis?
Blepharitis is inflammation of the eyelid which begins at the base of the eye lashes. Learn more from Dr. Marian Macsai about blepharitis.
Transcript
The patient's skin is very sensitive at the base of their eyelash, and the chronic exposure
to that dirt from the atmosphere that adheres to the eyelashes causes inflammation.
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What is blepharitis? Blepharitis literally means inflammation
of the eyelid, leph meaning eyelid, itis, meaning inflammation. And in all normal people, we have
eyelashes that have one purpose, which is to act almost as a filter to keep the dirt in the air out
of your eyes. At the base of your eyelashes, there are little oil glands that create
oil that covers the lashes so the dirt in the air will stick to them. In some patients, most commonly, patients
of Northern European descent, but blepharitis is seen in every color, every race, every sex,
the patient's skin is very sensitive at the base of their eyelash, and the chronic exposure
to that dirt from the atmosphere that adheres to the eyelashes causes inflammation.
And in time, that inflammation can be so severe that it clogs those oil glands and causes
them to be sealed off. When that happens, people develop styes, and sometimes,
eye health
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