Do you feel something in your eyes? Beware of this problem

Eyelashes are a magical part of our facial tissue. Although they look inconspicuous, as long as people who love beauty put a little effort into them, they can be the finishing touch, which can not only add charm to the eyes, but also modify the entire face. However, some people's eyelashes are very "naughty" and like to grow in the opposite direction. This not only affects the appearance, but also threatens the health of the eyes.

Tu Huifang, chief physician, leader of the ophthalmic plastic surgery group of Aier Eye Hospital Group, and director of eyelid and orbital disease/ocular plastic surgery at Aier Eye Hospital Affiliated to Wuhan University (Aier Eye Hospital Group Hubei General Hospital), explains "entropion and trichiasis of the lower eyelid".

How does eyelash extension occur?

We call these "reverse-growing" eyelashes - inverted eyelashes, which is a common eyelash position abnormality disease in ophthalmology. Eyelashes that grow toward the inside of the eyeball can easily irritate the cornea and conjunctiva, causing foreign body sensation, pain and other eye discomfort, and damage to the cornea and eyeball. There are many reasons for inverted eyelashes. Inverted eyelashes in children are often caused by excessive skin or hypertrophy of the orbicularis oculi muscle, coupled with incomplete development, which can easily lead to entropion of the lower eyelid, and then inverted eyelashes. In addition, eyelid inflammation, scars, eyeball atrophy, or relaxation of local eyelid tissue in the elderly can lead to inverted eyelids and inverted eyelashes.

What are the dangers of eyelash inversion

Our eyes are very sensitive due to their self-protection mechanism, and they can sense discomfort even with a little foreign matter. Eyelashes that grow in the opposite direction can easily rub against the surface of the eye, causing a foreign body sensation. When you feel discomfort, you want to relieve it by rubbing it repeatedly, but abnormal eyelashes are like a brush. The more you rub them, the more you will aggravate the friction on the eyeball and cause damage to the cornea.

Moreover, during this process, if you do not pay attention to hand hygiene, it will provide opportunities for bacteria to invade, and it may easily cause keratoconjunctivitis, corneal ulcers, trachoma, etc., which will affect vision.

How to treat inverted eyelashes

Doctoral student, deputy chief physician, secretary of the orbital and ocular plastic surgery group of Aier Eye Hospital Group, Lu Xiulan, reminds: If children with entropion caused by dysplasia have no obvious symptoms, they can be observed for a long time and there is no need to rush for surgical treatment. However, if children have symptoms such as frequent rubbing of eyes, squeezing, red eyes, tears, and excessive secretions, they should go to the hospital in time to check whether the entropion has caused obvious damage to the cornea. In this case, surgical treatment is required as soon as possible.

If an adult has only two or three ingrown eyelashes, they can be removed regularly at the hospital. However, this method cannot fundamentally solve the problem. After removal, the hair follicles will grow eyelashes again, and the ones that grow out may be thick and hard.

A more effective method is to use electrolysis to destroy the hair follicles and remove them. If there are a lot of inverted eyelashes, it would be better to consider corrective surgery for entropion.

Tu Huifang, chief physician, leader of the ocular plastic surgery group of Aier Eye Hospital Group, and director of eyelid and orbital disease/ocular plastic surgery at Aier Eye Hospital Affiliated to Wuhan University (Aier Eye Hospital Group Hubei General Hospital), said: It is important to note that the current corrective surgery for entropion and trichiasis is very mature, and it is also an effective way to treat trichiasis. Friends who are troubled by trichiasis should never pull out their eyelashes at home, as it is easy to cause infection. Pulling out the broken ends of eyelashes may cause more severe eye irritation symptoms, and repeated pulling out will aggravate the growth of disordered eyelashes. The correct approach is to seek medical treatment in a timely manner, follow the doctor's professional diagnosis and advice, and solve the problem of trichiasis from the root.