Bacteriology of Ophthalmic Infections
K. Balamurugan, U. Prithika in Pocket Guide to Bacterial Infections, 2019
The infectious and inflammatory conditions of the lid margin, including the eyelash follicles and sebaceous and apocrine glands are generally described as blepharitis, the most encountered eye infection. It typically occurs bilaterally and exists as a recurrent chronic condition. Blepharitis is a multifactorial complex disease, which institutes several overlapping signs and symptoms (Jackson, 2008). Meibomian gland dysfunction, conjunctival redness, crusting, hyperkeratinization and redness of the eyelid, ocular itching, burning and irritation, dry or watery eyes, and photophobia are typical symptoms of blepharitis (McCulley and Shine, 2000; Favetta, 2015). Surplus colonization of lid-margin microbes, abnormal lid-margin secretion, or dysfunctional tear film will prompt the infection.
Ophthalmology
Keith Hopcroft in Instant Wisdom for GPs, 2017
Blepharitis causes inflammation of the eyelids and can result in a multitude of symptoms, including a foreign body or burning sensation, excessive tearing, itching, photophobia, red and swollen eyelids, redness of the eye, blurred vision, frothy tears, dry eye or crusting of the eyelashes on awakening. Examination may reveal crusty red eyelids and a lash margin with debris stuck to it. The eyes may be mildly red and there may be ‘frothy’ secretions at the lid margin. Treat with lid hygiene. A typical regime is a warm compress, followed by a cleansing of the lashes from the roots, aiming to clear the debris, using cotton gauze softened with lukewarm water (advise patients to keep their eyes closed while doing this so as not to cause corneal injury). Blepharitis rarely resolves, so patients need to continue these measures indefinitely. Severe blepharitis might need a short course of antibiotics and topical steroids.
ENTRIES A–Z
Philip Winn in Dictionary of Biological Psychology, 2003
(from Greek, blepharon: eyelid, spaein: to convulse) Blepharospasm is a condition in which both the eyelids shows chronic and persistent blinking. The condition is generally known as benign essential BLEPHAROSPASM, to distinguish it from disorders of blinking that appear as secondary symptoms of other disorders. (It is also to be distinguished from blepharitis, which is an infection of the eyelid.) In the initial stages blepharospasm presents as excessive blinking, but over time this can become so intense that the eyes are to all intents and purposes closed. The spasms disappear during SLEEP and may be controlled by concentration on a particular task. The precise cause of the disorder is not known, but it is believed to be a disorder of BASAL GANGLIA function. (Drugs such as LDOPA given for the relief of PARKINSON'S DISEASE may initiate blepharospasm as a side-effect—though fortunately one that is alleviated by moderating the dose of L-DOPA.) Misactivation of the fifth (the TRIGEMINAL NERVE) and seventh (the FACIAL NERVE) CRANIAL NERVES also occurs. It is treated quite effectively with injections of BOTULINUM TOXIN in very small doses: relief may take up to 2 weeks to develop but will then be present for up to 3 months. However, this is essentially control of the musculature; it prevents expression of the disorder rather than treating the (unknown) core dysfunction in the basal ganglia.
Is the presence of Demodex folliculorum increased with impaired glucose regulation in polycystic ovary syndrome?
Published in Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 2020
Semra Eroglu, Murat Cakmakliogullari, Elcin Kal Cakmakliogullari
Blepharitis, a frequent clinical manifestation that is usually chronically-progressing, is the inflammation of the edges of the eyelids, including the eyelashes. The most frequent bacterial factors causing blepharitis are Staphylococcus epidermidis, Propionibacterium acnes, Corynebacterium spp. and Staphylococcus aureus and the most common parasitic factor is D. folliculorum (Roihu and Kariniemi 1998). By considering that D. folliculorum might be seen more frequently because of acne and fatty skin formation in patients with PCOS, especially those residing on the face, may be seen on eyelashes and cause blepharitis despite frequent face washing; when efficient treatment is not made, this settlement may continue as a vicious cycle and disrupt the life quality. We aimed to examine the relationship between D. folliculorum and blood glucose control in patients with PCOS with skin and eyelash lesions.
Clinical trials with multiple endpoints can establish a correlation, but not (yet) causality, between dietary supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids and keratoconjunctivitis sicca
Published in Journal of Medical Economics, 2018
In the vast majority of cases (up to 86%), meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) – a separate eye disease – accounts for the principal cause of dry eye1,3,4. Meibomian glands in the upper and lower eyelids secrete oils into the surface of the eye and help keep tears from evaporating rapidly. MGD refers to a blockage, or some other abnormality, in these glands that causes insufficient tear production or poor secretions of meibum, resulting in quick tear evaporation. MGD is closely associated with blepharitis or inflammation of the eyelid margin3. Soreness and redness of the eyelids, often accompanied by crusty debris at the base of the eyelashes, are typical signs and symptoms of blepharitis. Some ophthalmologists believe that blepharitis is a precursor of MGD and dry eye, rather than the direct result of bacterial, fungal, and parasitic eyelid infections5.
Advances in understanding of Netherton syndrome and therapeutic implications
Published in Expert Opinion on Orphan Drugs, 2020
Evgeniya Petrova, Alain Hovnanian
NS patients develop recurrent skin infections predominantly with Staphylococcus aureus. Secondary infections with S.aureus can trigger flares (personal observation) [9]. Blepharitis due to Staphylococcus aureus are also frequently observed. Fungal and viral infections (except for HPV in papillomatous lesions) are unusual. Other skin complications include lichenification in flexor creases with thickening of the skin as in atopic dermatitis. NS patients can also develop papillomatous skin lesions in particular in the groin, perineal and genito-anal regions, which can be HPV positive and can evolve into a giant condyloma of Buschke-Löwenstein tumor Figure 2 [10–12]. Squamous cell carcinomas of the skin have been reported in a few cases of adult NS patients [13].
Related Knowledge Centers
- Blurred Vision
- Eyelash
- Eyelid
- Inflammation
- Meibomian Gland Dysfunction
- Parasitic Disease
- Photophobia
- Allergy
- Pathogenic Bacteria
- Staphylococcal Infection