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Red eyes

Description

Red eyes can be your serious concern as they can cause pain or change your vision. Eye redness or bloodshot eyes denote the presence of various health concerns. Though some of these problems do not require much attention, others are serious and require emergency medical attention. Your eye redness can be a cause of concern and most problems occur with change in vision or pain in the eyes.

Common causes of red eyes

Allergies 

These may affect eyes which make them red and swollen. Other symptoms are:

Dry eyes

According to studies, dry eyes is very common in women, people above 50 years and individuals who need to wear contact lenses. When you have dry eyes, you might find the eyes becoming red. Other symptoms include:

Conjunctivitis

This generally occurs when membrane which covers inside of the eyelids and whiter part of eye gets inflamed. This condition is what you call pink eye. Other symptoms with conjunctivitis include:

Blepharitis

Blepharitis happens when the eyelids get inflamed which cause your eyes to become swollen or red. Other symptoms include:

Uveitis

Uveitis is the inflammation which occurs at the middle part of eye. Symptoms to look out with uveitis include:

Scleritis

Scleritis happens when the inflammation affects whiter part of your eye known as sclera. Symptoms include the following:

Subconjunctival hemorrhage

Sometimes, the blood vessel in your eye may break, leaking blood on eye surface. This is known as subconjunctival hemorrhage. Some symptoms are the following:

Angle-closure glaucoma

This is a condition when eye pressure increases due to eye producing more amount of fluid. This may cause damage to optic nerve causing loss of vision.

Symptoms include the following:

Corneal ulcers

These can affect outer part of your eye known as cornea.

Symptoms include the following:

Injury

An injury which affects your eye may become red which happens due to bleeding or irritation.

Symptoms include the following:

Contact lens wear

Individuals who wear contact lenses tough their eyes and surrounding areas often than the ones who do not need to wear lenses.

Symptoms include the following:

Other causes for red eyes

How to prevent the problem of red eyes

What causes eyes to become red?

The common causes of red eyes include – dry eyes, allergies, conjunctivitis and contact lens overwear. Allergy eye symptoms occur due to inflammation of eye surface when immune system overreacts to different allergens such as pet dander, weeds, pollen or grass.

How can you clear your red eyes?

When can your red eye become serious?

Red eye become serious when your vision changes suddenly. This can be accompanies by eye pain, extreme headache, fever or unusual light sensitivity. You might even experience vomiting or nausea.

Can stress lead to red eyes?

Yes, stress can be the reason for your red eyes. The body generally produces adrenaline in response to stress, which can cause dry eyes and tension. Both of them can cause red eyes.

Does red eye cause infection?

The bacterial infections may cause red eye which is related to pus or discharge from the eye. They can lead to be red eye which is associated with crusting of eyelashes with little or no discharge. Viruses may be the reason for conjunctivitis such as – red eyes, runny nose due to common cold and sore throat.

When to call an ophthalmologist for red eye