As a family eye doctor in a central Minnesota neighborhood, I see many patients with common eye disorders that may or may not be serious. Also, individuals typically will call or e-mail with questions relating to whether a particular symptom such as eye inflammation or swollen eyes warrants a see to an eye doctor.
Common Eye Disorders List with Descriptions
This guide was produced to help you discover the kind of eye disorder you might have and what ought to be done about it. However these guidelines are just a summary and absolutely needs to not change a consultation with your very own optometrist.
When it comes to signs of eye disease, Americans are blind to the facts. A current study showed that while almost half (47%) of Americans stress more about going blind than losing their memory or their ability to walk or hear, nearly 30% of those surveyed confessed to not getting their eyes examined.
Generally, common eye disorders can be broken down into significant eye symptoms, making it simpler to sort them out and come up with specific standards. Significant categories include:
- Inflammation
- Itching
- Swelling
- Burning
- Trauma
- Pain
- Blur (reduction in vision)
- Spots, flashes and floaters
What if Your Eyes Are Red and Irritated?
Red and bloodshot eyes have lots of causes, consisting of infection, swelling, allergy, broken capillary and injury. If the white of your eye (sclera) looks red or pink, you might have one of the list below conditions:.
Pink eye. If you have kids, you likely know about an eye infection referred to as pink eye. Grownups can get it, too. If the inflammation is from a type of pink eye called conjunctivitis, you likewise will have symptoms such as itching, burning or stinging, eye discharge, swelling, watering– or a mix of the above. Some kinds of pink eye are contagious, and some are not. Allergic conjunctivitis, for example, is not contagious. However viral and bacterial kinds of pink eye are contagious. So it’s best to see your eye doctor or family doctor for diagnosis and possible treatment.
Quick Suggestion: Up until you know more about what might be triggering your problem, you need to prevent rubbing your eyes. Ensure you wash your hands often. For relief, use cool, wet compresses on the outside of your closed eyelids.
Eye allergic reactions. Allergies can be seasonal (spring and fall), or they can happen when something annoying (irritant) attacks your eyes, like cat dander or fumes. Symptoms of eye allergies include itchy eyes and red, watery and puffy eyes. How your eyes are affected might depend on the time of year and kind of plants you have in the area where you live. We Minnesotans have the tendency to have lots of seasonal allergy problems in the spring and fall. However lots of people can also have year-round allergies because of dust mites, molds, etc.
Quick Suggestion: Attempt cold, damp compresses on the outside of your closed eyelids. You also may find relief if you take an over the counter antihistamine orally. If the allergy continues to irritate you, you may need to see your eye doctor for a prescription to help you deal with symptoms.
Damaged blood vessel. Tiny capillary in the white of the eye can break from straining, raising, rubbing or for no reason at all. When this happens, the sclera ends up being bright red from the blood leaking under the clear conjunctiva and the condition is called a subconjunctival hemorrhage.
A red eye from a subconjunctival hemorrhage looks scary, however generally it is safe and ordinarily isn’t thought about an emergency.
Quick Suggestion: To be on the safe side, you should see your eye doctor within a day or two after discovering symptoms to make sure there’s no underlying cause for the broken vessel. Otherwise, there truly is no treatment aside from time for the majority of these blood leakages. But I always inform my patients to make up a great story, since everyone will ask what happened!
Eye injury. Getting struck in the eye can certainly cause inflammation, in addition to pain and blurred vision. The eye might be scratched or gouged, but there likewise could be hidden damage inside the eye, such as a separated retina, that can be very major and must be treated. Unless the hit is extremely light, an eye doctor ought to treat eye injuries right away.
Quick Suggestion: For some immediate relief, put a really cold compress or ice pack on the injured eye. Prevent rubbing it. If you can’t reach your optometrist, go to an emergency clinic or immediate care center for help.
Itching and Itchy Eyes
Nearly all eye itching is caused by some sort of allergy. Extremely typically, mild itching can be assisted with over the counter lubricating eye drops. I ‘d avoid the ones that eliminate inflammation (decongestants), as they can be addictive. You can also use cold compresses or ice bag to assist with itchy eyes.
More severe itching might need extra help, such as oral antihistamines or prescription eye drops. Although itchy eyes are not an emergency, you still may have to consult your eye doctor for recommendations or a prescription.
If your eyelids are red and inflamed, you might have blepharitis. Make certain you visit your eye doctor to figure out the cause and suitable treatment.
Quick Suggestion: Attempt to prevent rubbing your eyes! Rubbing releases chemicals called histamines that in fact make the itching even worse.
Blurred Vision
If you have blurred vision that takes place all of a sudden and persists, consider this an emergency. See your eye doctor, or go to an emergency situation room/urgent care center.
If one eye becomes fuzzy or goes dark suddenly, like a curtain coming down, this is an emergency and ought to be checked out by your optometrist or an emergency room/urgent care center. This could suggest a retinal problem, like a detachment, or perhaps a stroke.
If you have some minor blurring that comes and goes, this might indicate exhaustion, dryness or eye strain. Keep in mind that many eye conditions can cause some blurred vision, consisting of pink eye, allergies, dry eyes as well as a lot of near vision work. The majority of these are not emergency situation circumstances.
Quick Suggestion: For mild blurry vision, try resting your eyes. If the blurry vision persists, make a visit for an eye exam.
Puffy Eyes
Uncommon puffiness around the eyes typically is a sign of an allergy. Naturally, trauma such as getting struck in the eye likewise can cause eyes to swell.
Quick Suggestion: If puffy eyes are caused by an allergy, you might need to take an over-the-counter decongestant orally to alleviate symptoms.
Burning Eyes
Burning eyes can be brought on by allergic reaction, dryness, fatigue, vision stress (like computer system work) or a mix of the above. See your eye doctor if the burning persists, however this symptom usually is not an emergency situation.
Quick Suggestion: Typically, eye burning or stinging can be eliminated with over-the-counter lubricating eye drops and rest. Using cool, wet compresses over your closed eyes also can help.
Eye Pain
Eye pain can be sharp or dull, internal or external, constant or periodic, stabbing or throbbing. As a general rule, if you have eye pain along with soreness, you ought to consider this an emergency situation and either see your optometrist or go to an emergency room or immediate care center right now.
Constant eye pain, especially when moving your eyes or gently pressing on your eyes, can sometimes suggest an inflammation of a few of the inner eye parts. This indicates you need to attempt and see your optometrist as quickly as possible for medical diagnosis and treatment.
I typically assist individuals with rheumatoid arthritis or fibromyalgia (chronic pain throughout the body) who are having related eye pain. Eye pain often is triggered by dry eyes, which needs to be treated with over-the-counter or prescription medication. Periodically, eye pain is triggered by something severe, like uveitis. This is an inflammation of the inner eye tissues, like the iris. Again, this kind of condition should be dealt with as quickly as possible.
Eye pain with blurred vision should be considered an emergency situation and needs to be investigated as soon as possible by your eye doctor or by the emergency room/urgent care center.
Quick Suggestion: If your eye pain is dull like a headache in your eye, however there is no inflammation or blurred vision, this could be triggered by overuse, eye strain and even sinus issues. I suggest seeing your doctor only if it does not clean up with rest or maybe some Tylenol or Advil.
Spots, Flashes and Floaters
Many spots and floaters are normal. They are triggered by littles protein and other tissue embedded in the clear, gel-like material (vitreous) that fills the within the eye.
As we age, the vitreous becomes more fluid and these thread-like hairs and shapes move (” float”) more quickly within the vitreous, makings them more visible. Likewise, the vitreous can separate or separate from its connection to the retina, causing extra floaters.
But some floaters, specifically when accompanied by flashes of light, can show something major is taking place inside your eye that might cause a separated retina.
As a basic rule, if you have a few little dots, threads or “bugs” that reoccur depending upon how worn out you are or what type of lighting you remain in, these are typical floaters. However if you unexpectedly see flashes of light, clouds of floaters, swirly mists or a drape over part of your vision, it’s best to see your optometrist or an emergency situation room/urgent care center. They’ll dilate your pupils to see what’s going on inside your eyes and make sure it gets dealt with if requirement be.
The majority of retinal detachments can be helped if dealt with quickly. If retinal detachments are neglected, however, they can lead to a loss of vision and even loss of sight.
Quick Suggestion: Most vitreous detachments developing spots and floaters simply need to be watched. But you have no chance of understanding whether you have a vitreous detachment or an even more serious retinal detachment. So in either case, make sure you see a doctor.
Foreign Object (Something in the Eye)
Getting something in your eye seems like it needs to be an emergency situation, and it often is. Whether your eye is attacked by a piece of metal, a thorn or sticker or a sharp object, it’s vital that you see an eye doctor or an emergency room/urgent care center right now.
Do not rub your eye or attempt to remove whatever is in there. You could cause more damage. Loosely tape a paper cup (or eye guard if you have one) over your eye and seek help.
Quick Suggestion: Let’s likewise be useful. Not whatever that gets in your eye is severe. All of us have little bits of something in our eyes at times. If you know it’s simply a piece of dust that’s annoying your eye, you can attempt washing it with saline service or utilizing lubricating eye drops. If you are able, attempt turning your eyelid inside out to see if you can dislodge the particle. If none of these natural home remedy works, then it’s off to the doctor.
