Many people wake up one day with an irritating infection in their eye. They don’t know where it came from or what it’s doing there, but suddenly they realize, they have pink eye. The medical name for pink eye is conjunctivitis, but most people tend to use the common parlance.
Pink eye has several different causes. The symptoms of it are fairly obvious and can be seen in the mirror, or felt in the eye. It’s also a very contagious disease which can be easily spread from person to person if people aren’t careful. One of the best ways of being careful is by learning about what pink eye does to a person and how it can be avoided.
Symptoms of Pink Eye
The symptoms of pink eye are pretty obvious to most people. All of the symptoms are felt in the eye rather than anywhere else in the body. In that way, pink eye is very simple. However, anyone suffering from it likely wouldn’t describe it as simple. Some of the symptoms are:
- Redness - This symptom is what gives the affliction its common name. The redness in the eye can be in one, or both eyes depending on the infection and how it has spread.
- Itch - One of the hallmarks of pink eye is the determined itch that is felt throughout the eyes. It can be very difficult to not touch and rub the eyes, but this is important to keep from spreading it.
- Grittiness - This feeling can be felt in the yees. It’s the feeling that there’s sand or some other type of material in the eyes.
- Crusting - Sometimes people with pink eye will have a fluid discharge from the eyes during sleep. This will harden and form a crust on the eyes during the night. It makes opening eyes difficult in the morning.
- Excess Tears - People with pink eye may find themselves tearing up unexpectedly or excessively tearing up during their suffering.
Causes of Pink Eye
Pink eye can actually be caused by quite a few different things. The most common way to get pink eye is through either bacteria or viruses. This can be common if people aren’t careful about cleaning their contact lenses or if they have problems with respiratory infections.
It’s also possible to get pink eye from other sources. One of the methods is allergic in nature. Certain allergies can cause pink eye in people. It’s also possible to get pink eye from chemicals or other objects that enter the eye that shouldn’t be there.
Treatments of Pink Eye
Treatment of pink eye doesn’t focus on removing the condition, but rather on fixing the symptoms that are troubling a person. Items such as artificial tears are common. Proper moisture applied to the area is common. People may be told by doctors to wipe their eyes several times per day with a cold or warm cloth.
In really bad cases, some eye drops may be prescribed, but it’s rare. The reason it’s not common is because it’s usually viral. Antibiotics aren’t going to be useful when fighting a viral infection. Essentially, it’s time that treats pink eye the best.
