The infamous Red Eye!
The infamous red eye!
You wake up with a red eye and panic sets in…first thing you think, pink eye, I’m contagious!…But is it?
What if the redness is because you had your cat, Fluffy, sleep with you last night? Or is it because you have been putting in long hours at work and have been on the computer for 8+ hours a day?
Red eye can be a common occurrence for some people but red eye does not always mean it’s the classic ‘pink eye’. Red eye can be caused by a variety of conditions and problems.
Lets run through a few of the most common.
Conjunctivitis: this is the common pink eye caused by a bacterial infection, typically more common in kids, however, adults can get pink eye too, as some of us have already had the pleasure of getting once in our lives. Pink eye is an infection of the conjunctiva, the membrane that covers the sclera (the white part of the eye). It’s contagious and often starts in one eye but quickly moves to the other. Goopy, glassy-eyed, matted eyelashes in the morning are some common symptoms, along with the pinkish-red eye. Typically an antibiotic eye drop is needed to help speed recovery.
Dry Eye: this can cause red eyes and is typically caused by not enough tears or poor quality of tears; however, the environment, certain medications, systemic conditions can also be the cause of dry eye. In fact, dry eye can present with varying symptoms and signs so its best for your eye doctor to take a look at those red eyes to determine the cause of dry eye and treat accordingly.
Allergies: During different seasons, red eyes can be more prevalent, along with symptoms of itchy eyes or swollen eyes. The same irritants in the air that cause sneezing, or stuffy nose can cause eye redness. Cold compresses, allergy eye drops and prescription eye drops can help with this type of redness to temporally reduce symptoms quickly. Some eye drops are formulated to help prevent symptoms all together, when taken in advance.
Contact lens wear: before you ask, no, your eyes should not be red with contacts lens wear. Often red eyes for a contact lens wearer could suggest, overwear of contacts, poor fit of lenses, but sometimes can even suggest irritation from contact lens cleaning solutions, contact-lens specific infection and hypersensitivity or intolerance of lens materials. Most of these symptoms and problems can be eliminated, if not reduced with daily disposable contact lenses, but again, its best for your eye doctor to take a look and determine if a new contact lens fitting is necessary.
Eye strain: It is becoming more and more common for most of us to be on a screen of some sort throughout the day. Most of our jobs rely on computer use 8 or more hours a day. Staring at a computer screen leads to eye strain and fatigue, and often burning and red eyes. One reason is that our blink rate decreases with such activity; on average we blink 8-21 blinks per minute however, on the digital device, that number decreases up to 60%. Most interesting is that the type of blink (incomplete blink) changes with digital use. Completeness of a blink contributes to symptoms associated with computer vision syndrome. Frequent breaks help reduce eye strain, as well as, computer glasses with anti-glare protection and blue light filtering lenses.
Other causes of red eye? Eyelash extensions, colds or the flu, injury to the eye and smoky environments. And don't forget lack of sleep or lack of proper hydration, they also contribute to red eyes.
As always, if you suspect you have red eye, schedule a visit with your eye doctor. Your eye doctor can identify whether your red eyes are due to an infection, allergic reaction, or contact lens related and provide the proper treatment to help reduce symptoms and protect the eye.
Stay Happy & Healthy!
Dr. Jennifer Wademan, O.D.
