Eyelid Disorders

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Summary

Your eyelids help protect your eyes. When you blink, your eyelids spread moisture over your eyes. Blinking also helps move dirt or other particles off the surface of the eye. You close your eyelids when you see something coming toward your eyes. This can help protect against injuries.

Like most other parts of your body, your eyelids can get infected, inflamed, or even develop cancer. There are also specific eyelid problems, including:

Eyelids that turn in or out
Eyelids that droop
Abnormal blinking or twitching

Treatment of eyelid problems depends on the cause.

Start Here

Eye Problems: Symptom Checker Flowchart (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish

Symptoms

Eye Symptoms (American Academy of Ophthalmology) Also in Spanish

Treatments and Therapies

Blepharoplasty - series (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

Specifics

Bell's Palsy: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Benign Essential Blepharospasm (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Blepharitis (National Eye Institute) Also in Spanish
Blepharospasm (National Eye Institute) Also in Spanish
Dark Circles under Eyes (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Eye Twitching (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Eyelid Growths (Merck & Co., Inc.) Also in Spanish
Eyelid Trouble? Managing Blepharitis (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish
Meibomian Gland Dysfunction and Treatment (American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus)
Ptosis (American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus)
Stye (Sty) (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Styes and Chalazia (American Academy of Ophthalmology) Also in Spanish
Trichiasis (Merck & Co., Inc.) Also in Spanish

Genetics

Blepharophimosis, ptosis, and epicanthus inversus syndrome: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)

Images

Blepharitis (VisualDX)
Droopy Eyelids (Ptosis) (American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery)
Eye (Blepharoplasty) and Brow Lift Photos (American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery)
Stye (Hordeolum and Chalazion) (VisualDX)
Xanthelasma Palpebrarum (VisualDX)

Statistics and Research

Eye Health Data and Statistics (National Eye Institute) Also in Spanish

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Blepharoptosis (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Blepharospasm (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Chalazion (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Eyelid Diseases (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Reference Desk

NEI for Kids: Glossary (National Eye Institute)

Find an Expert

Find an Ophthalmologist (American Academy of Ophthalmology) Also in Spanish
Finding an Eye Doctor (National Eye Institute)
National Eye Institute

Children

Epiblepharon (American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus)
Eyelid Problems (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

Blepharitis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Chalazion (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Ectropion (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Entropion (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Eyelid bump (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Eyelid lift (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Eyelid twitch (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Ptosis - infants and children (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

Topic Image

MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

National Institutes of Health

The primary NIH organization for research on Eyelid Disorders is the National Eye Institute

Disclaimers

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