# Ectropion (outward-turning eyelid)

- Category: chronic
- Review status: reviewed (every claim checked against a document named on this page)
- Sources: Ectropion - StatPearls (NCBI Bookshelf NBK441929) - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK441929/ · ICPC-3 (WONCA International Classification of Primary Care, 3rd edition) class FD99.00 - condition scope only, no dose · No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care
- Verified date: 2026-08

## Verified against

- No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care

## Treatment metadata

- No drug therapy in primary care (Referral & Advice)

## Complete treatment card

```text
ECTROPION (OUTWARD-TURNING EYELID)
Sources: Ectropion - StatPearls (NCBI Bookshelf NBK441929) -
         https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK441929/ · ICPC-3 (WONCA International Classification
         of Primary Care, 3rd edition) class FD99.00 - condition scope only, no dose · No dose -
         referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care
Review status: REVIEWED against the source listed above  (2026-08)

IS IT THIS? - reference only, to read alongside your own examination
  SYMPTOMS - what the patient reports (2)
    - Patients may report dry eye, eye rubbing, or a sense of eyelid instability  [dry eye]
    - The unprotected eye dries out, and that dryness is what causes the redness, the watering and
      the feeling of something in the eye  [foreign body · redness]
  SIGNS - what you find (7)
    - The lower lid margin sits low, normally 1 to 2 mm above the corneal limbus, exposing more
      cornea than usual
    - In severe cases the tarsal conjunctiva is visible along with chronic conjunctivitis and
      keratinization
    - Exposure keratopathy can leave the cornea dry with punctate erosions or ulceration  [corneal
      changes]
    - Lid laxity is assessed with a distraction test - pulling the lower lid down and out
    - A snap-back test times how long the lid takes to return against the eye after being pulled
      down
    - The eyelid margin turns outward, and it is usually the lower lid
    - Red flag: at the extreme the cornea takes punctate epithelial erosions, then ulceration, then
      permanent loss of vision  [loss of vision]
  IF NOT THIS - what else fits (5)
    - Basal cell carcinoma
    - Bell palsy
    - Floppy eyelid syndrome
    - Ichthyosis is on the differential
    - Squamous cell carcinoma of the eyelid
  Source  StatPearls "Ectropion" - disease-level clinical article
  Status  traced to the source above

1. NO DRUG THERAPY IN PRIMARY CARE (REFERRAL & ADVICE)    [1st line]
   Adult    Outward eversion of the eyelid margin, most often age-related, exposing the eye surface.
            A GP can offer lubricant drops/ointment to protect the exposed cornea while the patient
            awaits referral for surgical correction. - Refer, with advice
   Peds     Children follow the same pathway: recognise and refer. No primary-care medicine is
            implied.
   Source   No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care
   Why      Outward eversion of the eyelid margin, most often age-related, exposing the eye surface.
            A GP can offer lubricant drops/ointment to protect the exposed cornea while the patient
            awaits referral for surgical correction.
   Caution  No medicine is prescribed for this in primary care - this entry is for recognition and
            referral. Anything given is decided by the service it is referred to.
            RED FLAG - Corneal exposure with pain, redness or discharge risks exposure keratopathy
            or corneal ulceration: refer urgently.

Prices are indicative (dataset snapshot 2026-06); verify with the pharmacy.
```

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