Thursday 4 January 2018

All about Entropion! Symptoms, causes & treatment

Inward folding of the eyelid is a medical condition known as Entropion which usually affects the lower eyelid. In rare cases, Entropion may affect upper eyelid as well whereas the anomaly is different than Ectropion in which outward turning of the eyelid occurs.

Patients usually visit their eye doctors on noticing acute rubbing of skin and eyelashes against the cornea causing excess tearing (watery eyes), itchiness, discomfort, inflammation and stinging. Some people face the issue of permanent inward turning of the eyelid whereas for others, it only happens on blinking hard or tightly shutting the eyelids.


Entropion is mostly a genetic anomaly. Rare cases may involve an extra fold of skin at the lower eyelid while bilateral Entropion affects both the eyes. This particular disorder is rare in children, pre-teens and young adults, occurring mostly among individuals above the age of 60 years. Treatment of Entropion may involve Lasik eye surgery in Abu Dhabi but only after doctor’s consent!

Symptoms
  • Common signs and symptoms leading to Entropion may include;
  • Feeling of a foreign body/object in the eye and irritation
  • Excess watering of the eye known as epiphora
  • Crust formation on the eyelid or mucus discharge
  • Sensitivity to light and wind
  • Sagging of the skin around the eye
  • Redness
  • Occurrence of vision problems in case of corneal damage
Causes

Aging is a common factor. As people get older, more skin dangles around the eyelids and muscles underneath the eyes weakens. Scarring of the skin is another contributing cause for Entropion which occurs due to surgery, trauma, chemical burns and exposure of radiation to the face. All these conditions alter normal curvature of the eyelid.

Trachoma; a form of bacterial infection causes roughness and scarring to inner eyelid surface. Although the infection is uncommon in developed nations, tens of millions are affected worldwide. Spasm in the eyelid is another reason which causes inward folding of the eyelids while it can be hereditary as well.

Diagnosis

Routine check-up of the eye is sufficient for diagnosing Entropion. Doctor would examine the eyelids by asking the patients to tightly shut their eyes or blinking hard as they gently pull on them. In case the anomaly has been caused by rupturing of the tissue or perhaps surgical intervention previously, doctor would also check inside of the eyelids and the surrounding tissue. Evaluation of the root cause would decide the course of treatment to be followed which can be Lasik eye surgery in Abu Dhabi.

Treatment measures

In mild cases, prescribed eye drops may soothe symptoms of Entropion whereas stinging and even vision loss may occur in severe condition. Development of corneal ulcer is also possible that can become infected and cause extreme itchiness. In case risk factor is high to overall eye health, surgery is the only option.

Complications
  • Complications following Entropion include;
  • Damage and irritation to cornea
  • Development of corneal ulcer which if turns into infection may cause severe vision loss
  • Corneal abrasion and loss of epithelial layer surface of the cornea

Conclusion

Temporary treatment of Entropion involves lubricating ointments and eye drops until the time is right for surgery.

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