Swollen eyelids (left eye online)

[Kronik]

Hi there,

I have been having a swollen eyelid now for almost 2 years, no flakes or crusts. Went to several eye doctors and they all told me to do warm compresses, massage and clean the eyelid (they do tell me I got MGD, both eyes dont give alot of oil, which is why it's so weird that only one eye is swollen imo). I've done this so often, i'm starting to get crazy on it. It has never helped a single bit in appearance (it worsens the appearance after warming and massaging it) and the swelling never went down. Others say they can barely see it, only whenever I ask they notice, but I feel it constantly and this really hurts my self esteem..

What I've tried so far:
- Warm compresses for at least 10 minutes at a time
- Massage the eyelids after warm compress
- Clean the eyelid with Blephasol
- Take fish oil daily
- Chalazion removal once

After my holidays later this month I will try IPL and some kind of antibiotic.

I can share images if needed.

Any tips?

[Rebecca Petris]

Sorry to hear that. I wish I had any useful advice to share. I understand heat may be part of MGD treatment. For swelling though have you ever tried cold compresses?
Is it a constant, or does it change at all with the time of day?
Been to a dermatologist by chance?

[Kronik]

I've been to several eye doctors and dry eye specialists. The problem I have is that the lower eyelid (left eye only) is thicker from the middle to the side of the ear. Every blink I feel something there. Also my eyelid margin is often red, especially when I wake up or already after rubbing my eye a little bit. I actually went to a dry eye specialist today who took pictures of the in/outside of the eyelid. Is it allowed to share those, maybe someone knows what this is?

[OVY39]

Is it your upper or lower eyelid? I have similiar issue with my upper eyelids - unfortunately i can understand how it feels because I am a 39 y/o female and it affects my appearance. My right upper eyelid is swollen more than my left upper eyelid and my eyelashes are not what they used to be. My corneal specialist says it's due to inflammation and vascular issues (I have occular rosacea, blepharitis, MGD). Cold compresses and blinking exercises during the day help me somewhat. Limiting screentime helps. I tried IPL with expression and it helped but only short-term... I have been to a dermatologist and they ruled out allergies.

[Kronik]

It's only my left lower eyelid from the middle to the side of the ear. No clue what it is still, probaly blepharitis, but the inside is still really red if I compare it to my other eye. The only thing I currently do is gently expressing it with a q-tip and clean it afterwards with blephasol. Also had 2/4 IPL treatments, made zero difference so far to be honest. The only thing that happened is that my skin around the eye got red with real small red bumps, don't know if I even want to finish the last 2 treatments. I'd love to share the images, but don't know if I'm allowed to.

[Aline]

Hi Kronik - I would definitely try cold/ice compresses, very gently. Cold is the best always for swelling and inflammation. Aline