Your eyes are quite sensitive. Infections can flare up fast when harmful fungi, viruses, or bacteria enter the eye and the surrounding area. This includes the inner eyelids and cornea.
People who wear contact lenses are also at a higher risk of developing eye infections if they don’t properly care for their contacts. Other causes of eye infections include foreign objects in the eye, allergies, trauma to the eye, and chemicals entering the eye.
Keep reading to learn more about the signs and symptoms of eye infections you should watch out for!
Signs of Eye Infections
If you have an eye infection, you may experience one or more of the following signs:
- Flaking eyelids
- Eye pain
- Watery eyes
- Decreased or blurred vision
- Persistent itching
- Eye discomfort
- Eye discharge
- Swelling of the eyes, eyelids, or any surrounding tissue
- Increased sensitivity to light
- Feeling like there’s a foreign object in the eye
- Increased redness of the eyelid or eye
- Fever with no obvious cause
Although eye infections are quite common, they won’t always go away on their own. Some may get worse and lead to complications.
Treatment of Eye Infections
Seeking treatment early for an eye infection reduces the risk of complications. With proper treatment, most eye infections heal fast.
Your ophthalmologist can recommend various treatment options. This may include eye drops, oral medication, and eye ointment.
Treatment for eye infections will depend on whether the infection is due to allergies, fungi, bacteria, or viruses.
Allergies
Antihistamine or anti-inflammatory eye drops can be prescribed to provide relief for eye allergies.
Fungal Eye Infection
Antifungal drops or medication are used to clear fungal eye infections.
Bacterial Eye Infection
This type of infection is treated using ointments, antibiotic eye drops, or oral medication to get rid of any bacteria in the eyes.
Viral Eye Infection
Viral infections often disappear anywhere between 7-10 days without treatment. All you need to do is place a warm, wet cloth on your eyes to relieve the discomfort.
It’s crucial to follow your eye doctor’s instructions and finish your prescription even if symptoms go away. Depending on the underlying cause, eye infections usually last for a few days or weeks.
If the symptoms persist or sudden symptoms appear while undergoing treatment, it’s important to contact your eye doctor immediately.
How Can You Prevent Eye Infections?
Here are various steps you can take to prevent common eye infections:
- Do not touch your face and eyes when your hands are dirty
- Wash your hands regularly
- Avoid sharing your eye makeup
- Use clean towels and do not reuse tissues
- Change your pillowcases and sheets weekly
- To protect your eyes if you wear contact lenses, wash your hands before handling your contacts and disinfect the contacts every day.
Advanced Eye Care and Treatment
Without proper treatment, eye infections can cause pain, vision problems, and worse, lead to vision loss. The eye doctors at Joshi Eye Institute are extensively trained, knowledgeable, and experienced in advanced eye diagnostic procedures.
They provide top of the line treatments for eye infections, using state-of-the-art technology to optimize care.
Concerned about eye infections or general eye care? Schedule an appointment at Joshi Eye Institute in Boynton Beach, FL today!
