# Anyone here have blepharitis? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 2, 2013, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267 "2013-12-02T04:12:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![shiftless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@shiftless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shiftless)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2014, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/21 "2014-10-07T13:17:24Z")
I was diagnosed with it a few years ago. My symptom is extreme swelling all around the eyes. So I’ll wake up one morning, my eyes are just slits and my whole upper face will look like water has been injected under the skin. There’s some itching but I think that is from the swelling. Smoke, like campfires or grills, seems to be a problem for me. After doing some research I’ve decided that Blepharitis is a general term for any eye problem the doctor can’t explain. It seems to cover a lot of symptoms. In any case, my solution is careful cleaning of my eyelids, particularly along the base of my lashes. If I wake up and my face is swollen, a careful cleaning (baby shampoo) will usually fix the problem within a day. Sometimes I can feel it coming on as a slight itch and a good cleaning prevents the problem. So I guess my case is mild, but the symptom can be scary if I let it go. ---
**Author:** ![jharvey963](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/54ee81/32.png) [@jharvey963](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jharvey963)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2014, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/22 "2014-10-07T16:38:11Z")
I don’t know if it got mentioned anywhere, but the first thing I’d do is stop wearing contacts, if you are wearing them. I used to have a lot of problems with my eyes. Blepharitis got mentioned more than once, though I’m not sure I really had it. Do you have any problems with your skin? Have you ever been diagnosed with seborrheic dermatitis or acne rosacea? Are your cheeks, nose, and / or forehead red? All of my eye problems were due to my skin problems. Once I treated my skin problems, no more eye problems. There are lots of different treatments for these skin problems, including topical steroids, and going all the way up to Accutane. If you can, avoid all of these. They are short term treatments and have either bad side effects, or bad rebound effects. By all means, avoid Accutane. It is a \*\*nasty \*\*drug. For me, it did “dry up” anything that looked like acne, but it also dried up everywhere else, and I was itchy and scratching constantly. The treatment that worked for me was tetracycline, 500 mg a day. It cleared my skin problems right up, and solved my eye problems. Now, you can’t get tetracycline in this country anymore. Nobody makes it. (It was too cheap, and the drug companies didn’t make any profit on it.) Some dermatologists will suggest doxycycline as a replacement, but I found it to be much less effective. Tetracycline has very few side effects, it’s not very expensive, and it might be worth a try, since you’ve been dealing with this issue for some time now. You CAN still get it in Canadian mail-away pharmacies, however. Ask your doctor. Maybe try it for 3 to 6 months and see if it helps your problem. J. ---
**Author:** ![Pauly01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/df705f/32.png) [@Pauly01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pauly01)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/23 "2014-11-09T00:52:54Z")
So im back in the states. I contacted a few places that seem to have the blephex procedure according to the site. I had read this procedure is not expensive, its like $150-$200 total. I contacted a few places and all of them mention to see them its going to be 250-300 minimum for consultation. Then the procedure… there was one place that they charge 500-800 dollars per procedure. Is there a reason these places are quoted this high? I thought it didn’t cost more than $200 at the aboslute max and i read few ppl who done it for $150 only. ---
**Author:** ![Pauly01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/df705f/32.png) [@Pauly01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pauly01)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/24 "2014-11-09T17:38:03Z")
Im very surprised not that many ppl is familiar with this condition. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/25 "2014-11-09T18:35:52Z")
Where were those $150-200 quotes coming from? Outside the US? I’m not surprised you find it more expensive in the US; most medical procedures are more expensive here. There are lots of complicated reasons for this. About the only suggestion I have is to ask if they have a discount if you pay cash out of pocket without insurance. Often the price they give you when you call and ask is the price they bill the insurance company. The insurance company will then negotiate a cheaper payment, usually half or less what the stated price is. Some offices will give a person without insurance the same discounted rate that the insurance companies pay. Some won’t. But it doesn’t hurt to ask. ---
**Author:** ![Hopeful\_Crow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/da6949/32.png) [@Hopeful\_Crow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hopeful_Crow)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/26 "2014-11-09T19:45:21Z")
> [@Dereknocue67](#): > > I was diagnosed years ago and my symptoms were a feeling of grittiness in my eyes. My eye doctor suggested a daily routine of cleaning my eyelids with a solution of water and baby shampoo using a Q-Tip. I never did that but did begin daily cleaning while in the shower by placing a small amount of baby shampoo on a washcloth and gently cleaning my eyelids. This worked for me to treat what I consider a mild condition. > > I also recently switched to a dandruff shampoo and it certainly helped as well. This is my symptom as well. It doesn’t happen often but has been bothering me lately. I’m going to try the baby shampoo in the shower and see if that helps. ---
**Author:** ![Pauly01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/df705f/32.png) [@Pauly01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pauly01)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/27 "2014-11-09T20:14:16Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Where were those $150-200 quotes coming from? Outside the US? I’m not surprised you find it more expensive in the US; most medical procedures are more expensive here. There are lots of complicated reasons for this. > > About the only suggestion I have is to ask if they have a discount if you pay cash out of pocket without insurance. Often the price they give you when you call and ask is the price they bill the insurance company. The insurance company will then negotiate a cheaper payment, usually half or less what the stated price is. Some offices will give a person without insurance the same discounted rate that the insurance companies pay. Some won’t. But it doesn’t hurt to ask. Those rates came from what i found online and from ppl in the usa. I will be paying out of pocket and dont have insurance. So no… those rates are NOT out of the usa. ---
**Author:** ![Pauly01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/df705f/32.png) [@Pauly01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pauly01)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2014, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/28 "2014-11-20T20:51:04Z")
So i called a few places online that shows it has the blephex procedure and most of the places don’t even do it even more or have it in new york city. Does anyone know why this is the case? Makes not much sense. ---
**Author:** ![abderian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de0a6/32.png) [@abderian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abderian)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2014, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/29 "2014-11-20T23:55:57Z")
> [@Dereknocue67](#): > > I was diagnosed years ago and my symptoms were a feeling of grittiness in my eyes. My eye doctor suggested a daily routine of cleaning my eyelids with a solution of water and baby shampoo using a Q-Tip. I never did that but did begin daily cleaning while in the shower by placing a small amount of baby shampoo on a washcloth and gently cleaning my eyelids. This worked for me to treat what I consider a mild condition. > [@Hopeful\_Crow](#): > > This is my symptom as well. It doesn’t happen often but has been bothering me lately. I’m going to try the baby shampoo in the shower and see if that helps. I’ve felt a bit of this lately myself – the grittiness in my eyes, that is. This might sound like a stupid question, but are you cleaning the inside of your eyelids or the outside? Because it feels like I’ve got something gritty _inside_ my eyelid (between the lid and the eye), but I don’t know if it’s okay to be wiping the inside of the lid with a washcloth. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/30 "2014-11-21T00:38:57Z")
> [@Pauly01](#): > > So i called a few places online that shows it has the blephex procedure and most of the places don’t even do it even more or have it in new york city. > Does anyone know why this is the case? Makes not much sense. It seems that they haven’t got much in the way of convincing studies or evidence that it works, so doctors aren’t picking it up much. You might want to read this physician review before you decide to drop a few hundred dollars on a temporary solution that doesn’t solve the underlying problem: [http://www.toyosclinic.com/eye-news/review-blephex-mechanical-lid-scrub-blepharitis](http://www.toyosclinic.com/eye-news/review-blephex-mechanical-lid-scrub-blepharitis) ---
**Author:** ![Pauly01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/df705f/32.png) [@Pauly01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pauly01)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2014, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/31 "2014-11-27T05:05:38Z")
Anyone else with this condition? ---
**Author:** ![Pauly01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/df705f/32.png) [@Pauly01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pauly01)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2014, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/32 "2014-11-28T17:47:24Z")
Has anyone here used an eye bag like this? [http://www.eyebagcompany.com/products/The-EyeBag](http://www.eyebagcompany.com/products/The-EyeBag) > **[Amazon.com : MGDRx Eye Bag for Blepharitis : Eye Drops : Health & Household](https://www.amazon.com/MGDRx-Eye-Bag-for-Blepharitis/dp/B001U7RKUK)** > > Amazon.com : MGDRx Eye Bag for Blepharitis : Eye Drops : Health & Household ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2014, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/33 "2014-11-28T17:55:25Z")
I was diagnosed with blepharitis at one time, but it turned out to be a garden-variety eye infection caused by rubbing at my eyes with dirty hands. Once I became more careful about my hygiene it went away. ---
**Author:** ![NitaZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9fc348/32.png) [@NitaZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NitaZ)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2015, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267/34 "2015-02-14T23:26:46Z")
I have had dry eyes (blepharitis) for years and last 2 years chalazions. I am so tired of this and at my wits end! I have tried everything and on my 3rd doctor. I like her the best so far. She put me on Orecea. My out of pocket after ins is $113.00 a month. If Blephex can help, I would do it except I am not seeing that many long term reviews.:smack: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-here-have-blepharitis/675267.md?page=1)