“When a stye comes to a head or when it pops it will slowly drain and heal, but you should always let it do that on its own time,” Dr. Goldman says.
How to Get Rid of a Stye
If you have a small red bump, sometimes with a white head, inside or outside your eyelid, it’s probably a stye. It looks like a pimple, and it might be sore. But it’s not usually serious and won’t affect your vision.
A stye happens when one of the glands along your eyelid is clogged and irritated, just like when a skin gland on your face becomes a pimple. People usually have styes on just one eyelid, but you can have them in both eyes at the same time. A stye may be a one-time thing, or it may come back.
Stye Treatments
Most styes burst or go away on their own after several days. But cleaning it will help bring the pus out. Then, it will drain on its own. You can do a few things to get rid of it faster:
- After washing your hands, soak a clean washcloth in very warm (but not hot) water and put it over the stye. Do this for 5 to 10 minutes several times a day.
- Gently massage the area with a clean finger to try to get the clogged gland to open and drain.
- Keep your face and eyes clean. Get rid of any crust around your eye. Baby shampoo is an inexpensive, gentle cleanser.
- Take pain relievers like ibuprofen if the area is sore.
- Don’t wear eye makeup while you have a stye.
- Wear glasses instead of contact lenses while you have a stye. After it’s healed, clean and disinfect your lenses before putting them in again. Or switch to a new pair.
Because the stye looks like a pimple, you might want to squeeze or pop it. Don’t do that. It can spread the infection or make it worse.
Styes that come back might be tied to an eye condition called blepharitis. If you get styes a lot, talk to your eye doctor.
You should also see your doctor if:
- A stye doesn’t get better after a few days, or if it gets worse.
- Your eye (not just your eyelid) hurts a lot.
- You can’t see well.
- Your eyelid swells, turns very red, and won’t open all the way.
If the stye won’t go away on its own or if you have trouble seeing, your doctor may give you an antibiotic cream to put on it. They might also do surgery to drain the stye.
Are Styes Contagious?
An infected stye might have bacteria in the pus, but they aren’t contagious.
Stye Prevention
Some simple changes can help you keep from getting styes.
- Wash off makeup before bed every night so it doesn’t clog your oil glands.
- Wash your eyelids every couple of days with watered-down baby shampoo on a washcloth, or use an over-the-counter lid scrub.
- Wash and dry your hands before handling contact lenses or touching your eyes. Keep lenses clean and disinfected.
- Replace your eye makeup every 2 or 3 months to avoid bacteria.
- Don’t rub your eyes if you have allergies.
Show Sources
Cleveland Clinic: “Styes — How You Can Avoid Them and Best Treatment Tips.”
National Health Service (UK), NHS Choices: “Stye.”
American Academy of Ophthalmology: “What Causes Chalazia and Styes?”
Mayo Clinic: “Sty.”
American Academy of Ophthalmology: “Chalazia and Stye Treatment.”
American Academy of Pediatrics: “Sty.”
Cleveland Clinic: “Stye (Sty).”
Styes — How to Treat Them, How to Avoid Them
Do you sometimes get tender, red swollen bumps at the edge of your eyelids? They’re probably styes.
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And although they can be painful (and almost always uncomfortable), you can take steps to avoid them. If you want to know how to make them go away, there’s good news. In most cases, you can treat them yourself at home.
What causes a stye on your eye?
A stye is an infection in an eyelash follicle or tear gland.
If you scratch or get bacteria in the area, the follicle or gland sometimes gets blocked and infected, according to family physician Matthew Goldman, MD.
“Styes typically occur on the outside edge or just under the eyelid,” Dr. Goldman says. “They’re bumps that look like pimples, surrounded by redness. They usually last about three days, pop and then heal in about a week.”
What’s the best way to avoid styes?
Contrary to what some may believe, styes are not caused by stress. But some habits can make you more prone to getting styes. These habits can make a stye keep coming back or cause you to have a stye that won’t go away immediately.
To help prevent styes, follow these tips:
- Wash makeup off before bedtime so eye follicles don’t get plugged overnight.
- Replace eye makeup about every six months to avoid bacterial growth.
- Wash your hands regularly when using contact lenses.
- If you have allergies, don’t rub your eyes.
At-home stye treatment
Styes often look like pimples — making it tempting to squeeze them — but don’t do it.
“When a stye comes to a head or when it pops it will slowly drain and heal, but you should always let it do that on its own time,” Dr. Goldman says.
You can help the process along by placing a warm, clean, damp cloth on the affected eye for five to 15 minutes a few times a day.
Folding up a damp washcloth and microwaving it for a 10 to 20 seconds can work well. Just be careful the cloth doesn’t get too hot to use on your eyes. It’s convenient as a warm compress because as any edge of the washcloth gets too cool, you can refold for a warmer side.
“The heat allows it to drain on its own,” Dr. Goldman says. “Just continue to reheat the washcloth because it will lose heat over time.”
Over-the-counter ointments and solutions are also available to treat styes, but Dr. Goldman recommends a tried-and-true, inexpensive option for his patients. “Simply wash the eye gently with baby shampoo or a mild natural soap that doesn’t burn your eye,” he advises.
Also, to avoid further irritation and infection, he recommends not wearing makeup or contacts when you have a stye. “You want to keep the area clean and uncovered — cosmetics and contact lenses can prevent this,” Dr. Goldman adds.
If your stye won’t go away
If you are uncertain that what you have is a stye or it isn’t going away after a few days, you might need more treatment. Dr. Goldman recommends checking with your physician if:
- The stye hasn’t started to improve in a few days.
- It doesn’t resolve fully in about a week.
- It gets worse quickly.
- It grows in size.
- It bleeds.
- It affects your vision.
- It spreads to the white of the eye (a sign of infection).
- You see redness in the cheeks or other parts of the face (the infection is likely spreading).
If the infection spreads, your doctor may prescribe oral antibiotics or antibiotic drops.
It might not be a stye — know when to see a doctor
“Unusual bumps on the eyes that aren’t red or painful are likely other harmless issues like chalazion (a firm lump in an oil gland in the eyelid) or fatty deposits known as xanthelasma,” says Dr. Goldman.
Like styes, chalazion usually go away by themselves. Xanthelasma are not harmful, but are sometimes unsightly and a doctor can remove them.
More rarely, skin cancer can sometimes cause bumps in the eye area.
“Styes are generally easily managed and are usually an annoyance rather than a major problem,” Dr. Goldman says. “But if they don’t go away or you have other unusual symptoms, talk to your doctor.”
Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy
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