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Madarosis - loss of eyelashes

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

The loss of eyelashes is termed madarosis:

  • often this phenomenon is due to blepharitis - but this is uncommon in children; in this case madarosis is generally bilateral and there are other features of blepharitis such as itchiness, erythema and scaly lid margins
  • other possible causes include:
    • trauma from rubbing or plucking - may be the cause of unilateral or bilateral lash loss
    • alopecia areata - may cause unilateral or bilateral lash loss but is commonly found with hair loss elsewhere on the body
    • discoid lupus may rarely cause a scarring madarosis
    • idiopathic
  • treatments are available for madarosis but are generally initiated by an ophthalmologist or dermatologist (1)

Reference:

  1. Pulse (2003), 63 (46), 80.

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