Trichiasis can damage the cornea. There are five types of treatment methods: extraction, electrocautery, freezing, laser and surgery.

What are the causes of trichiasis? What are the symptoms?

The causes of "trichiasis" can be divided into two categories: congenital and acquired.

Congenital trichiasis occurs after birth, usually on the lower eyelids. Because the eyelashes prick the eyeballs, the baby often blinks and sheds tears. If the eyelashes prick the cornea, the eyes will become red and sensitive to light.

The most common cause of acquired trichiasis is trachoma. Because trachoma can cause scarring of the tarsal conjunctiva, which can lead to entropion and trichiasis of the eyelids. Eye burns, eyelid trauma or eyelid surgery can also cause eyelid scarring, causing normal trichiasis to pierce the eyeball. In addition, eye diseases such as pemphigoid can also cause trichiasis due to scarring of the eyelid conjunctiva.

Because the cornea of ??the eye is very sensitive, once trichiasis stings the eyeball, it will cause stinging, itching, or blinking. Some people have stronger corneas, and even if their eyelashes puncture their corneas, they will grow back quickly.

In older people, the cornea is relatively unhealthy. If the eye is stabbed and abraded by trichiasis for a long time, coupled with bacterial infection, it may cause corneal ulcer.

How to treat trichiasis?

When a child suffers from "trichiasis", if the condition is not serious, some antibiotic eye ointment can be used. If you have trichiasis with an entire row of eyelashes and entropion of the eyelids, surgical correction may be considered. Generally speaking, you can wait until after the age of two to have surgery.

Adult “trichiasis” can be treated using different methods.

1. Remove the inverted eyelashes: Use eyelash tweezers to remove the trichiasis. The operation is simple and has no sequelae. But eyelashes will grow back, so trichiasis needs to be removed every four to six weeks.

2. Electric burning method: The hair roots of the eyelashes are destroyed by electric burning so that the trichiasis will no longer grow back. However, electric burning may not be able to destroy the hair root very accurately. Instead, it may damage the adjacent normal eyelashes and cause additional trichiasis.

3. Freezing method: The hair follicles of the eyelashes are frozen and destroyed at a low temperature of minus 20 degrees. The effect is good. However, it may cause the eyelid pigment to fall off, resulting in uneven eyelid color.

4. Laser method: Using laser to destroy the roots of eyelashes has good results. But it may take two or three times to remove the roots, and the cost is also high.

5. Surgical method: If there are only a few local trichiasis, the trichiasis and eyelids can be removed together. If the scope of trichiasis is large, or even the entire row of eyelashes is inverted, surgery is required to turn the eyelid margin outwards to cure it once and for all.