Chalazion: symptoms, treatment and how long it lasts

Moorfields Eye Hospital says in many cases a chalazion can be treated at home, and that a chalazion may spontaneously discharge when the lid is cleaned or when hot compresses are applied. Its guidance on lid hygiene starts with a warm compress: hold a clean face cloth that has been run under a hot tap, hot but not hot enough to burn, on the closed eyelid for one or two minutes, rewarming if it cools. This softens debris on the eyelids and makes it easy to clean off.

The lid is then cleaned with a moistened cotton pad or cotton bud, using warm tap water or a weak solution of baby shampoo or bicarbonate of soda, running along the line of skin behind the lashes. If a chalazion comes back after being removed, Moorfields advises applying a warm compress to the closed eyelid and seeking further medical advice if it persists.

If the chalazion does not respond to first-stage treatment, Moorfields says it can be drained, or a doctor may give a corticosteroid injection into a hardened chalazion, which can lighten the skin around the area.

Moorfields says a chalazion is a harmless cyst caused by a blocked meibomian gland in the eyelid. These glands produce an oil that helps keep the eye moist. If a gland becomes blocked the oil builds up into a cyst that looks like a small lump in the eyelid.

It says a chalazion commonly occurs due to inflammation around the opening of the oil glands at the base of the eyelashes, called blepharitis, and that other risk factors include rosacea.

Moorfields lists a small lump which develops on an eyelid, and mild pain or irritation, particularly if it has just started, which usually settles. Sight is not affected. Chalazions can occur in various sizes, and a small proportion remain as a painless lump for up to a few months.

The lump can become irritated and red and, occasionally, infected, and the NHS says that if the lump is hard but not very painful it is more likely to be a chalazion.

Moorfields says it can be difficult to tell a stye from a chalazion as both are lumps around the eye. The main difference is that styes tend to be painful and sore, whereas chalazions are typically painless.

Moorfields says chalazions tend to only last a few weeks and are typically not painful, but a small proportion may remain as a painless lump on the eyelid for up to a few months. In children, it says most cysts disappear with time but can take weeks and sometimes many months, and are normally harmless and can safely be left to get better in most cases.

If it has not improved with home care, the NHS (on styes) says to see a GP if a lump does not get better within a few weeks.

Moorfields says the inflammation is caused by a sensitivity to a common bacteria found on the skin. When the openings of the small oil glands around the lashes become blocked by inflammation, a small tender swelling occurs in the lid. Risk factors include blepharitis and rosacea, and, although rare, viral conjunctivitis.

Moorfields says symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of chalazion are similar in adults and children, and that most cysts disappear with time. It describes how to clean the eyelids of children and babies using a warm compress and a face cloth wrapped around a finger, wiping gently along the lashes.

Seek further medical advice if, after treatment, your child has increasing redness and soreness of the eye itself, very blurred vision, or very noticeable and spreading redness together with a lot of swelling of the eyelid.

The NHS stye page says to see a GP if a lump does not get better within a few weeks. It advises asking for an urgent GP appointment or getting help from NHS 111 if the lump is very painful or swollen, it affects your vision, your eye is producing pus, or the infection has spread to your eye or eyelid.

Do not try to burst the lump or remove an eyelash yourself, as the NHS says this can spread infection. Moorfields says that if chalazions continue to occur, your surgeon may take a biopsy to check for other conditions.

Most chalazions are managed at home with warm compresses and lid hygiene. A GP can assess a lump that is not improving and refer you to an eye specialist in hospital if needed, according to the NHS.

Some people choose a private ophthalmologist for drainage or an injection. Moorfields says drainage is a minor procedure done under local anaesthetic with a same-day return home, so it is worth asking about aftercare and what to do if it comes back.