A swollen eyelid is usually a symptom, not a condition. It's very common and is usually due to allergy, inflammation, infection, or injury. The skin of your eyelid is less than 1 millimeter thick. But since the tissue is loose and stretchy, your eyelid can swell a lot.
The eyelid is a complex, fully functioning skin tissue made up of eyelashes, tear glands, sweat glands, and sebaceous (oil or meibomian) glands, among other parts. These tissues can develop inflammatory reactions, leading to a swollen eyelid.
Your eyelids have more functions than you might think. They:
- Keep sweat out of your eyes
- Trigger a reflex where your eyelids close when insects or other objects come near
- Stop dust and pollen from getting in your eyes
- Keep your eyes lubricated by spreading tears and other fluids around
- Keep eyes from drying out while you sleep
Swollen Eyelid Causes
A swollen eyelid is usually a sign of a medical condition, such as:
Less common reasons for swollen eyelids include:
- Eyelid infection around the skin of your eyelids or around the eyes (preseptal cellulitis or periorbital cellulitis)
- Inflamed eyelids (blepharitis)
- Shingles
- Thyroid conditions such as Graves’ disease
- General body swelling, such as in a kidney disease called nephrotic syndrome
- Infection around your eye socket (orbital cellulitis, which is rare)
- Infected blood clot blocking a vein at the base of your brain (cavernous sinus thrombosis, which is rare).
Depending on the cause, you may get swelling in one or both eyelids. Most of these conditions aren't serious, but you should make sure to clean and care for your eyes if your eyelid is swollen.
Swollen Eyelid Treatment
The treatment for a swollen eyelid depends on the cause. If you have an eye infection, you may need to use antibiotic eye drops, ointment, or other topical medication — meaning a medication applied on the body — to help remove the infection and ease your symptoms. Your doctor may give you antibiotics or steroids to take by mouth if the topical treatment doesn't work.
To relieve eyelid swelling and keep your eyes clear and healthy, try these swollen eyelid home treatments:
Apply a compress
Run a clean cloth under warm water and hold it gently on your eyes. Do this twice a day for 15 minutes at a time to help loosen crusty discharge and get rid of any oil that might be plugging your glands. The heat helps to unblock your glands. A cold compress (putting the cloth in cold water) can also work if you just need to get swelling down.
Gently wash the area
After applying a compress, use a cotton swab or washcloth to gently clean your eyelids with diluted baby shampoo. Rinse your eye area well afterward. You can use a saline solution to rinse if you have any discharge or crust around your eye or in your eyelashes.
Leave your eyes alone
While you have eyelid swelling, don't wear eye makeup or contact lenses. Get plenty of sleep, and avoid direct sunlight so your eyes can rest. Avoid touching your eyelids unless you're treating them.
Use eye drops
Use over-the-counter (OTC) artificial tears to keep your eyes moist and comfortable. Try antihistamine drops as well if your eyelid is swollen due to allergens.
When to See a Doctor for Swollen Eyelid Treatment
Eyelid swelling usually goes away on its own within a day or so. If it doesn't get better in 24 to 48 hours, call your regular doctor or see your eye doctor.
If you have any of the following symptoms, see your doctor right away:
- Fever
- Loss of vision
- Double vision
- Bulging of one or both eyes
Your doctor will ask about your symptoms and examine your eye and eyelid, using an object called a slit lamp, which magnifies your eyes. They'll ask questions about other symptoms or changes that may be causing your eyelid(s) to swell.
Your doctor can usually find out the cause of your eyelid swelling from taking a history and doing a physical examination. But if they think it's due to a condition like cavernous sinus thrombosis or orbital cellulitis, they may order an imaging test like a CT scan or MRI. If they suspect the swelling is because of a thyroid disease or other condition, they could order lab tests as well as imaging tests.
Swollen Eyelid Treatment for Kids
Children often experience eye irritation, typically from touching their eyes with unwashed hands. But there are several possible causes for eyelid swelling in children in addition to the ones listed above. These include:
- Rubbing the eye: Children often rub their eyes for various reasons but especially after getting an irritant in their eye.
- Insect bite near the eye: The loose tissues around the eye swell easily, which can happen as a reaction to a mosquito or other insect bite.
- Itchy rash (contact dermatitis) near the eye: Contact with poison ivy, detergents, or other irritants may affect the eyelid.
To treat your child, try these home remedies:
Cold pack
Apply ice or a cold pack wrapped in a clean, wet washcloth to the eye for 15 to 20 minutes at a time to decrease eyelid swelling and pain.
Allergy medicine
You can safely give your child an allergy medicine or antihistamine by mouth. This will help to decrease eyelid swelling and itching. Try diphenhydramine (Benadryl) every 6 hours or so.
Eye drops
For eyelid swelling that interferes with your child's vision, use a long-lasting vasoconstrictor eye drop such as tetrahydrozoline (Visine). No prescription is needed. The recommended dose is one drop every 8 to 12 hours as needed for 1 to 2 days.
Emergency Swollen Eyelid Treatment
You should seek emergency medical care if you or your child experience:
- Drooping of the eyelid
- Fever that won't break
- Light sensitivity
- Seeing flashing lights or wavy lines
- Loss of vision or double vision
- Severe redness, inflammation, and a hot feeling
- Severe swelling (the eye is shut or almost shut)
Takeaways
A swollen eyelid is usually a symptom of another condition. It could be caused by something as simple as an allergy or a sign of something more complex like a thyroid disease or an infection. Treatment could mean taking an antibiotic (if the swelling is from an infection) or trying home remedies like a compress or eye drops.
Swollen Eyelid Treatment FAQs
How do you get rid of swelling on the eye from crying?
Crying leads to puffy eyelids because you're producing a lot more water than your eyes' drainage system can absorb. Some of the tears will stay in the tissues of the lower eyelids, causing swelling. Reduce the puffiness by placing cucumber slices or used tea bags on your eyelids. You could also put witch hazel on cotton pads and apply it to your eyelids or under your eyes. Be careful not to get it in your eyes as it will burn.
Does eye swelling indicate any underlying health condition?
Sometimes it can be a sign of something serious, like a kidney disease or thyroid disease. But most of the time, eye swelling is likely to be related to allergies, pink eye, or a stye.
How do you treat itchy eyelids?
The most common cause of itchy eyelids is allergies — you could be allergic to pollen, makeup, pets, dust or contact lens solution. The first thing to do would be to avoid the thing that's causing the allergies, if possible, or stay indoors during pollen season. For itch relief, put a cold compress over your eyes or use eye drops (either artificial tears or anti-allergy eye drops). You could also take antihistamine medicines like Benadryl that relieve allergy symptoms. Whatever you do, don't rub your eyes! You might add more allergens to them by doing this.
