Post chalazion procedure: how long will it take for the appearance of the lump to go away?

It has been a very long time since I have had to surgically excise a chlazia. I inject them with Kenalog. The vast majority simply melt away. Occasionally a second Kenalog injection is need about 6 weeks later. Although I do advise people that surgery is recommended if the chalzia does not respond to two Kenalog injections, I have not seen this in 25 years. The reality is that eye doctors get more money for surgery than injections. They are also trained to do the surgery. If you need more help for this chalazia, please get a Kenalog injection. 

When a chalazion, (stye), is treated by incision and drainage, it does take a few days to a few weeks for the thickening in the eyelid to resolve.  As long as the firm area is getting successively smaller, one may continue to expect it to go away.  Alternatively, if the firm area gets progressively larger, the stye may be coming back.  Why?- Even when the cyst cavity is successfully drained, the lining of the gland may begin functioning again, and if natural drainage has not been re-established during the healing process, the secretions of the gland collect again and reform the cyst.  Your doctor will want to know if the chalazion is coming back, and will help you decide if and how it should be addressed.  

The chalazion definitely has mass. We remove a lot of it but you can always remove all without creating other issues. Often steroid medicine is used at the same time to reduce surrounding inflammation which adds to the mass effect.70-80% of the mass is gone after the procedure. Another 10% goes over the first week usually. The remainder can take a few weeks but usually not visible--just something you can feel with your finger.