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Stye (Sty)

By Judith Lee and Gretchyn Bailey; reviewed by Vance Thompson, MD

A stye (or sty) develops when an oil gland at the edge of an eyelid becomes infected. Resembling a pimple on the eyelid, a stye can grow on the inside or outside of the lid.

Styes typically do not cause vision problems and can occur in people of any age. Another term eye doctors use to describe a stye is hordeolum.

Stye Symptoms and Signs

Styes are not normally harmful to vision and generally heal within a few days.

The first signs of an eye stye are pain, redness, tenderness and swelling in the affected area; then a small pimple appears.

Sometimes just the immediate area is swollen; at other times, the entire eyelid swells.

With a stye, you may notice frequent watering in the affected eye, increased light sensitivity and a feeling like something is in your eye (eye doctors call this a "foreign body sensation").

What Causes a Stye?

A stye is caused by staphylococcal bacteria. This bacterium is found in the nose and is transferred easily to the eye when you rub first your nose, then your eye.

Is a Stye Contagious?

Pretty much everyone has this stye-causing bacteria in their body, so we all have the potential to develop a stye without outside contamination.

Still, if you have a stye, you don't want the bacteria within to come into contact with someone else's eye. This might indeed cause them to develop a stye or other infection as well. So keep your eyes and hands clean, and don't share pillowcases, washcloths or towels with others.

Stye Treatment and Prevention

Most styes heal on their own within a few days. You can encourage this process by applying hot compresses for 10 to 15 minutes, three or four times a day, over the course of several days.

This will relieve the pain and bring the stye to a head, much like a pimple. In most cases, the stye will then rupture, drain and heal without further intervention.

Never "pop" a stye like a pimple; allow it to rupture on its own.

A stye that forms inside the eyelid (called an internal hordeolum) might not rupture and heal on its own. Because this type of stye can be more serious, your eye doctor may need to open and drain it.

If you have frequent styes, your eye doctor may want to prescribe an antibiotic ointment to prevent a recurrence. He or she also might recommend using pre-moistened eyelid cleaning pads for daily lid hygiene to reduce the risk of styes and blepharitis.

Chalazion: Another Type of Eyelid Bump

Often mistaken for a stye, a chalazion (shah-LAY-zee-on or kah-LAY-zee-on) is an enlarged, blocked oil gland in the eyelid. A chalazion mimics a stye for the first few days, then turns into a painless hard, round bump later on.

Most chalazia develop farther from the eyelid edge than styes.

Although the same treatment used for a stye speeds the healing of a chalazion, the bump may linger for one to several months. If the chalazion remains after several months, your eye doctor may drain it or inject a steroid to facilitate healing.

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[Page updated July 2011]