The reason why older people get blepharitis is because of age related changes in the older persons eyelids, and most particularly changes in the meibomian glands and also a decline in the older persons overall immune system function.
The glands in the eyelids which are tiny, produce oil for tears and lubrication of the eyes, and can become less efficient as you age and can also become blocked and result in inflammation, dry eyes and blepharitis.
Also older people often experience thinner skin and a less robust immune system, which also increases the risk of eyelid infections and blepharitis.
Other people who are prone to blepharitis are people with conditions such as seborrheic dermatitis or dandruff, oily skin and people with rosacea.
Also people who wear contact lenses or have allergies or those who are also exposed to certain irritants like chemicals or dust are also more prone to get blepharitis.
Blepharitis is a pretty common condition and affects between 15 percent to 25 percent of people and it also affects both men and women.
Over the counter Omega 3 supplements can help some with blepharitis as well as using warm compresses, eyelid cleansers, artificial tears and eyelid scrubs can help with blepharitis.
Some other things you can do for blepharitis are to clean your eyelids daily and apply a warm compress to the eyelids and blepharitis for 10 to 15 minutes a day, several times a day.
The warm compress over your closed eye for a few minutes or so can help loosen the crusty deposits from your eyelids.
You can also firmly and gently massage the eyelids to help with blepharitis.
You can also use some eyelid scrubs or even use a bit of diluted baby shampoo solution to remove crust and scales and or use some hypochlorous acid spray to reduce bacterial and inflammation on the eyelids.
Pre moistened eyelid wipes such as Optaste eyelid wipes can be good for daily cleaning of your eyelids.
If you wear makeup or contact lenses you should avoid makeup and contact lenses until the blepharitis has gone away as they can make it worse.
In some cases if a bacterial infection is the cause of the blepharitis you doctor can prescribe some antibiotic eye drops, ointments or other oral antibiotics.
Corticosteroid eye drops or ointments may also be used for blepharitis to reduce inflammation and redness, especially in severe cases of blepharitis.
Blepharitis is caused by several different things which include skin conditions such as seborrheic dermatitis and rosacea, blocked eyelid oil glands and even bacterial overgrowth.
Even mites or Demodex and allergies can also result in and cause blepharitis.
Blocked eyelid oil glands and bacterial overgrowth are the most common causes of blepharitis.
The eyelids have tiny oil glands which are called the meibomian glands and these tiny oil glands in they eyelids secrete oil to lubricate your eyes.
But when the tiny eyelid oil glands get clogged or malfunction and not work as they should, they can lead to dry eye symptoms and posterior blepharitis.
The dysfunction of the eyelid oil glands is often associated with seborrheic dermatitis or rosacea.
Bacterial overgrowth can result especially when the oil glands are clogged but can occur at other times as well even when your eyelids are not cleaned.
Bacteria naturally live on the human skin, which includes around your eyelashes and eyelids and in blepharitis, there's an overgrowth of the bacteria, which is often the bacteria called Staphylococcus, which can result in irritation and inflammation of the eyelids.
The overgrowth of the bacteria can be caused by poor eyelid hygiene, underlying skin conditions and clogged oil glands.
Seborrheic dermatitis can result in dandruff on your scalp and eyebrows, which can spread to your eyelids and cause inflammation and result in anterior blepharitis.
Rosacea is a skin condition which causes redness and inflammation on your face, including your eyelids which can result in blepharitis forming.
Other things that can trigger or cause blepharitis are allergic reactions to makeup, contact lens solutions, other allergens, poor eyelid hygiene and demodex mites.
Demodex mites are microscopic mites which live in hair follicles including the hair follicles of the eyelashes and an overpopulation of Demodex mites can irritate your eyelids and cause blepharitis to form.