Pinkeye, or "conjunctivitis," if you care about flexing your medical jargon or happen to be playing Scrabble, is an inflammation of the conjunctiva within the human eye. While the conjunctiva is the membranous lining around the outer white of the eye. It’s not the sclera itself. The sclera is all of the white parts of the eye. While some people joke about having pink eye because of how their sleep schedule plays havoc with their vision, resulting in reddened eyes, anyone with an actual case of pink eye will quickly clarify the differences and go on to explain just how unpleasant, ugly and downright irritating conjunctivitis can be. The rest of this article is dedicated to informing the public about this particular ailment and will go into what causes it, how to recognize if someone has it and how to go about getting rid of the optic problem.
Causes of Pink Eye
There are multiple ways that a person can go about acquiring pink eye. The most common way is from a viral infection, it is not unheard of for a person to get it from bacteria, allergies, some other irritation or even excessive dryness. Both the bacterial and viral iterations are contagious, spreading through either physical contact or with water sources. Contaminated fingers are the leading cause of conjunctivitis.
Adenoviruses are the primary source of viral pink eye. It can also arise from herpes simplex viruses and can be a rather severe strain. Acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis is another way in which a virus can lead to this ailment. The main bacterial culprits of pink eye are Haemophilus influenzae, Staphylococcus aureus, and Streptococcus pneumoniae. Staph is one of the chief culprits in chronic cases, those lasting more than 3 weeks. Some people can react so badly to certain substances like smoke, dust, eye drops or pollen that it manifests as pink eye. Pink eye arising from allergies accounts for 15% of all eye-related health visits.
Signs and Symptoms of Pink Eye
Viral pink eye tends to manifest as infection along the upper respiratory tract, a cold or even sore throat. Patients complain of itching and over-stimulation of the tear ducts. While viral pink eye starts in one eye, it takes little effort for the condition to spread.
Bacteria pink eye entails redness, swollen eyelids and sticky discharge. While first manifesting in a single eye, the other may succumb in 2-5 days. If the condition arises from pus-generating bacteria, the discharge may be gritty, stringy, opaque and some color between gray and yellow. This discharge may cause the eyelids to stick together, especially after heading to bed. Understandably, this also causes excessive crusting around the affected eyes. This grittiness is known to be several enough to convince people that a foreign object is stuck in their eye.
While allergies vary with the patient, the result is a histamine rush that causes redness, swelling, itching and tears. Optic exposure to strong acids or bases may cause conjunctivitis as a side effect of the burn.
Treating Pink Eye
Viral cases take care of themselves without any intervention. Some basic meds can help alleviate symptoms. Bacterial pink eye also tends to go away on its own, with topical antibiotics only being necessary if the problem lasts for more than three days. Antibiotics can also come into play if the patient requires contact lenses to see, is immunocompromised, is believed to suffer from certain venereal diseases, has decent pain or excessive discharge.
In the event that pink eye arises from an allergic reaction, pour cool water over the face with the head angled downward to restrict capillaries. You may also find success in dealing with minor flare ups by flushing the eyes with artificial tears. In extreme cases, anti-inflammatory medications and antihistamines can be prescribed. In recurring cases, topical options may be necessary. Pink eye from chemical causes are medical emergencies and should almost always feature a quick trip to an emergency room.