White Eye Discharge

[jam922]

I have been experiencing an oily white discharge from the outside corner of my right eye for the past five or six years. It occurs with frustrating regularity and I am constantly having to rub my eye in order to clear the condition. It can reoccur within the space of 10-15 minutes. I have had my tear ducts checked, and they are apparently working fine. The ophthalmologist has told me he could see an excessive build up of dirt in the eye and prescribed me steroids (eye drops) which did absolutely nothing to help the condition. I was also told to use a cotton bud to clean around the eyes daily which just made them sore and so I stopped doing that. A subsequent visit to my GP resulted in a long lecture on unrelated eye disorders, although he did say it may be symptomatic of a very mild form of eczhma because I have slightly dry skin on my cheeks, and I know my father ocassionaly suffers from eczhma - although he does not have the eye problem. Because the condition is not an infection, and not threatening my ability to see, it has not been taken seriously and I feel like I've been fobbed off with prescriptions for treatments that don't work. Is this something I will have to live with for the rest of my life, or is there some kind of operation or treatment that can cure this condition? It's seriously affecting my social confidence and I feel constantly paranoid that my eye is gunking up because it usually is. I'm at the end of my tether and I just don't know what to do. Any help would be massively appreciated. Thank you.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS]

See a Eye MD ophthalmologist that specializes in external eye disease and corneal disease. Find one at www.aao.org

JCH III MD