Different Types of Eye Infections
Your eyes are your
biggest asset. The world and its contents are beautifully placed but what’s the
use of these if you can’t see them. It’s said you can ignore what your ears
hear but never ignore what your eye sees, that’s the power of an eye.
We all suffer from an
eye problem, may be minor or major but if ever you face any issue in your
vision consult a doctor before it becomes a challenge. Vision is a boon to humanity, preserve it well.
What is Red Eyes infection?
The eye surface is
covered in blood vessels which expand when it feels any irritation or stress.
Even if you lack sleep or allergy your eyes might turn red.
Conjunctivitis or eye
infection due to the sun can also be a reason for red eyes. Try an eye
drop(mostly prescribed) and give some rest to your eyes or wash it with cold
water. In case this doesn’t heal, consult a doctor.
What is Dry Eyes infection?
When the eyes stop secreting its natural water, it results in dry eyes. You might feel the presence of something or a burning sensation due to the loss of water.
Treat yourself with a doctor’s advice or else prolonged consequences can be loss of vision.
The recommended treatment may comprise of:-
• Eyes drop (recommended) that work like
natural tears
• Plugging something in the tear ducts to
lessen drainage
• Lipiflow, applying pressure and heat to
treat dry eyes
• Eyelid cream, Testosterone
• Usage of a humidifier at home
• Fish oil and omega-3 supplemented with
nutrition
Medicated drops like
cyclosporine (Cequa, Restasis) or lifitegrast (Xiidra) to stimulate tear
production.
What is Excess Tearing?
Your eyes may be
sensitive to dust, light or temperature changes that squeeze out water from
your eyes. To prevent just protect your eyes with sunglasses.
Continuous tearing may
lead to blocked tear duct or eye infection. These can be treated so do visit a
doctor if you face such problems.
What is Glaucoma?
When too much pressure
is applied to the eye, the nerve that connects the eye to the brain is damaged
which leads to a group of eye diseases. For this regular eye, a checkup is a
must.
Visit a doctor for a
recommendation. During the initial stage, an eye drop would be suggested but
would require surgery for better effects.
What is Eyestrain?
A lot of work like
reading, focusing on digital instruments, driving, etc. cause a huge strain on
the eyes due to which a pressure is created on the nerves and the eye becomes
weary.
It needs some relaxing
by resting for a few hours without focusing on anything. In case even after
this your eyes feel weary; see a doctor make sure there isn’t anything else.
What is Cataract?
When light cannot
process through your retina easily and your vision is disrupted, you may notice
a glare or a halo around lights at night, understand it’s a cataract.
They form slowly and
don’t give any previous symptoms like itching, redness, pain, etc.
In mild cases, they
don’t block much of your sight but in extreme cases, surgery is suggested.
What is Night Blindness?
This is a symptom that
is due to lack of Vitamin A. Some people are born with it and some might it
from a degenerative disease involving the retina which can’t be usually
treated.
You might face a
challenge to find your way through at night or in dim light. Be extra careful
if you are suffering from night blindness and take advice from a doctor to take
precautionary measures.
What is Amblyopia (Lazy Eye)?
When one eye doesn’t develop properly, this condition is known as Lazy Eye which is medically named amblyopia.
Vision is weaker in the affected eye so one eye stays static while
the other eye has the vision but the movement is slow. This condition is found
in all age groups irrespective of gender and rarely affects both the eyes. For
infants and children, the urgency for treatment is more.
If the treatment is started at the early stage then lifelong vision challenges can be avoided.
The
doctor suggests using contact lenses or corrective glasses and using a patch or
any other strategy depending on the condition to make a child use the lazy eye.
What is Colorblindness?
A condition when either
you can’t see a few colors or can’t differentiate a few colors (generally reds
and greens), you are suffering from colorblindness. This is due to the cone
cells (color cells) either not working properly or its absence in the eye.
In extreme cases, only
shades of grey can be seen (but it’s rare). Some people are born colorblind and
some develop it due to the dose of certain drugs or affected by some disease-
the doctor can identify the cause by a simple test. The males are more prone to
have it by birth than females.
There is no as such
treatment for the same but special contact glasses can assist to differentiate
between certain colors.
What is Strabismus (Cross Eyes) and Nystagmus?
When you stare at
something and understand that the vision is not at par with each other,
understand it’s a sign of Strabismus. A common language may call it Cross eyes
or Walleye.
To cure oneself of it,
a visit to an eye specialist or ophthalmologist is a must.
Nystagmus is a
condition due to which there is continuous involuntary eye movement.
Surgery or vision
therapy is suggested to make the eyesight stronger. This treatment is suggested
after the doctor analyses the condition of the affected and understands what
suits best.
What is Uveitis?
Uveitis is a condition where the middle layer of the eye contains maximum blood vessels. The Prolonged condition may destroy eye tissue or cause loss of vision.
All age groups can be
affected and its symptoms may be temporary or may take a long time.
This is more seen in people with a weaker immune system who may be suffering from AIDS, rheumatoid arthritis or ulcerative colitis.
The symptoms can be highlighted as:-
• Eye Redness
• Blurred Vision
• Pain
• Sensitive to light
As you feel any of the
following above, do see a doctor. The uveitis can be of different types as it’s
a group of a disease so a doctor would diagnose it accordingly.
What is Presbyopia?
Presbyopia is a
condition when one loses the ability to see small prints or any object that is
close by.
This appears when the
eyes lose its elasticity and it’s normal in aging. To support the vision
reading glasses, contact lens, or eye surgery (LASIK) can be done.
What is Floaters?
Tiny specks of dust
like objects flow in the mid of your vision. It can be clearly spotted in a
more lighted space.
Floaters are normal but in serious cases can cause retinal detachment (when the retina separates from the layer underneath).
Due to this, you may see either dark patches or flashes
of light in the mid of your vision.
See a doctor if the
conditions increase as they might affect the peripheral vision by bringing in a
curtain.
What are Retinal Disorders?
A thin lining on the back of the eyes that capture the image and pass them to the brain to identify is the Retina.
So any disruption is the retina causes a blockage in the
transfer. The Retina Disorder varies like:-
• When the retina breaks down into small
portion called macula, it’s macular degeneration (Age-related)
• When due to diabetes the blood vessels in
the retina are damaged, its diabetic retinopathy.
• When the retina separates from the
underneath layer it causes Retinal detachment.
A diagnosis in the
early stages can help stop fatal problems.
WHat is Conjunctivitis (Pinkeye)?
When the tissue at the
back of your eyes curtains the sclera that gets inflamed you are affected by
conjunctivitis.
Signs are- itching,
burning, water discharge, redness or you feel the essence of some particle in
your eye.
They may be caused due
to exposure to chemicals or allergies. Touch your eyes after you have worked on
something, this can reduce getting affected to conjunctivitis.
What is Corneal Disease?
The Cornea is the
window to the vision; it supports light to penetrate in. Exposure to toxins,
injury or any infection and disease may damage it. The signs are- redness,
watery eyes, pain halo effect.
Visit a doctor at an
early stage. The treatment would include- new glasses, prescribed eye drops and
in extreme cases, surgery helps.
What is Eyelid Problem?
Your eyelid is a
barrier to all infection. They protect your eyes from extreme light and other
dust. Blinking spams at other edges near eyelashes, pain, and itching can cause
eyelid problems. The treatment would include medication, cleaning the eyelids
and even surgery at extreme problems.
Vision Changes
As aging penetrates the
vision may become weaker. Glasses or contact lenses do support in this case but
then when the vision is too much of a trouble, LASIK (surgery) helps a lot.
Other eye diseases like
macular degeneration, glaucoma, and cataracts are vision problems. An eye
checkup routine is a must to safeguard oneself from these problems.
If you find any blurry
vision or temporary sight disturbance do see a doctor or else it may turn out
fatal. An eye is not a joke. In case you need an emergency call in the US on
911.
Problem with Contact Lenses
Touch your contact
lenses with clean hands. Take care of the guidelines to keep your eyes safe
from its effects:-
• Do not try homemade solutions for your
lenses.
• Putting contact lenses in your mouth to wet
them is infectious.
• Use prescribed eye drops for your lenses.
• Do not scratch your eyes when you are on
with your lenses.
• Never sleep with your lenses on even though
they are FDA approved. They may turn out risky for your eyes.
Even after all the
safety measures your eyes still face irritation then you may be allergic to
lenses or might have dry eyes. In such cases, glasses would be a better option
for you.
Keep your eyes safe
because they are the ones that help you see the beautiful world. Once gone very
difficult to get them back.
Author's Bio
Name: Gwynneth May
Educational Qualification: MBBS, MD (Medicine) Gold Medalist
Profession: Doctor
Experience: 16 Years of Work Experience as a Medical Practitioner
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