A discharge of thick, mucus-like fluid from the eyelid or eye, often indicating infection or inflammation.
From Greek 'blepharon' (eyelid) + 'blennos' (mucus) + '-rrhea' (flowing or discharge). The term emerged in medical literature in the 19th century to distinguish this specific type of mucoid discharge from other eye secretions.
Doctors use '-rrhea' words (like diarrhea) whenever something's flowing abnormally, and blepharoblennorrhea was particularly important in the pre-antibiotic era when sticky eye discharge was a major sign of serious gonococcal infections passed to newborns during birth.
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