Red eye: Here's when to see a doctor

Red eye is more common than you think and can affect one or both eyes. An irritation or infection could cause blood vessels on the surface of your eye to dilate resulting in redness, according to Mayo Clinic. Often times, it’s nothing to worry about, getting better on its own after a short period. However, sometimes it can be serious requiring immediate medical attention in cases such as the following:

Pink eye

This condition also known as conjunctivitis occurs when the membrane covering the insides of your eyelids and the white part of your eye, called the conjunctiva, becomes inflamed, according to Healthline. It’s so-called pink eye because the inflammation of the conjunctiva makes the whites of your eyes to have a pinkish colour. Other symptoms of this include sticky eye, gritty or burning feeling.

Infections from contact lenses

Recent studies show that reusing contact lenses, wearing them in the shower or going to sleep with them on makes you more susceptible to developing Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) – is an infection of the cornea. Explaining to The Sun, Dr Nisa Aslam, a GP said:

Complications with contact lenses including not cleaning them before placing them in the eye which can cause abrasion to the surface of the eye allowing infection to enter.

This leads to severe pain and blindness in a quarter of recorded cases

Blepharitis

Blepharitis is caused by the inflammation of the eyelid leaving it swollen and red, Healthline says. According to Dr Nisa:

It is caused by bacterial infection which causes the base of the eyelids to become inflamed. Blepharitis can also lead to red eye.

A common cause of this condition is using dirty or expired beauty products around the eye.

When to see a doctor

Although the above the causes and symptoms of red eye have varying degrees of seriousness, there are certain instances where you have to seek immediate attention as in these cases outline by Mayo Clinic:

• Your vision changes suddenly
• It is accompanied by severe headache, eye pain, fever or unusual sensitivity to light
• You suddenly begin to see halos around lights
• You're unable to open your eye or keep your eye open

Sources used:

Mayo Clinic: Red Eye

NHS: Red Eye

The Sun: The 5 common causes of red eye – and when to call 999

Healthline: What You Need to Know About Eye Redness

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