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How long does it take to relieve symptoms of Blepharitis?

Posted , 12 users are following.

08kx250f
08kx250f

Hi, I am 27 years old and sadly I took two rounds of accutane when I was 20-21 years old and ever since then my eyes have been very red, dry and sensitive to light. I was diagnosed with Blepharitis shortly after finishing my accutane and the doctor had told me to do warm compresses and followed by Ocusoft lid scrubs. I honestly don't know how long I did that (probably for a few weeks if that) and had to stop becuase my eyelids were so dry and I was frustrated because I wasn't seeing any results really. I read about othe people whos eyes have been ruined due to accutane and pretty much just gave up. I did compresses here and there but never religiously, thus in all this time I have never really actually tried to treat the Blepharitis.

Fast forward to now. I've been doing more research and after actually having a better understanding of Bleph I see a bit of hope. Currently my eyes are always red, I have permanent veins in them, and I can't wear contacts more than an hour (really like 10 minutes, but i just keep putting drops every 10 minutes. Only wear them while playing sports). My eyelids are not red and don't really look swollen. From time to time I will get bumps on the portion of the eyelid that releases oils when you blink so I know that I still have a Blepharitis problem. The thing is when I take both index fingers and stretch out my upper eyelids by the lash line there is large bumps at the base of the eyelashes. I am guessing this is the Staphyloccocus bacteria?

Symptoms:

- Dry eyes

- Sensitive to light

- Randomly my eyes start to burn here and there (discomfort isn't much of a issue for me though. Mainly redness)

- cant wear contacts

- Rarely do i see any oils excreted from the MG glands on my eyelids

Currently:

- Compresses/massage morning and night

- Ocusoft Plus lids scrubs morning and night (started today)

- Taking Theratears (since 3 days ago)

- Restatis (been on it for 2 months)

 I've decided to recommit myself to treating this issue because I've realized there might be a small chance I can overcome this. So I have a few questions... 

1. How long does it take to kill the Staph bacteria on the eyelids?

2. Am I doing enough or is there anything else or better I should be doing?

3. Any hope for a accutane sufferer like myself?

 

2 likes, 42 replies

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  • Marina_Dee
    Marina_Dee 08kx250f

    Posted

    Have Staph bacteria actually been identified on your eyelids?    Blepharitis is usually caused by non functioning meibomian glands in the edge of the lid. This certainly can be a side effect of Accutane use,along with dry skin in general and dry mouth. When you posted a pic I thought it would show the tiny bumps which can occur along the eylid when these glands start to block and stop working but your pic is not too clear. I have had this complaint for years and started with the cleansing with cotton buds but now use an eye lubricating ointment at night,which is thicker than drops and lasts through the day usually. If I need any topup I use Celluvisc eye drops 2% or Carmize drops...both the same ingredient....Carmellose Sodium.

            Have recently discovered an eye drop called HYCOSAN which contains healing,anti inflammatory Sodium Hyaluronate.    Good luck...it can be an awfully long struggle until you find the right treatment for yourself. 

    Best to keep off contact lenses until you find that treatment.

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