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Eye pain can signal a minor condition such as eye strain or irritation of the conjunctiva, but it can also indicate a serious eye disease such as glaucoma or optic neuritis. Therefore, eye pain should never be taken lightly.
Eye pain may accompany conjunctivitis
Conjunctivitis may be an allergic reaction, accompanying upper respiratory tract catarrh or microbial infection. The pain is slight, the burning is more irritating.Eyesare red, sensitive to light and watering. There is a purulent discharge in the corner of the eye.
» Our advice: If you don't feel better after 3 days of using over-the-counter drops, see your doctor. Also when conjunctivitis recurs frequently (the cause must be determined). The ophthalmologist conducts an interview and examines the eye with a slit lamp. If the prescribed treatment is not effective, it may be necessary to collect the secretion for culture with an antibiogram.
Glaucoma - a sudden attack causes severe pain
In glaucoma, severe eye pain occurs suddenly and radiates to the bones of the face and sometimes to the back of the head. It causes severe eye pain, loss of visual acuity, perception of rainbow circles around light sources, reddening of the eyeball, unnatural dilatation of the pupil. The eye is bright red. With an attackglaucomayou may experience nausea (sometimes vomiting), profuse sweating and a slower heart rate. The reason for an attack of glaucoma is the uncontrolled increase in pressure in the eyeball. An attack of glaucoma can result in complete loss of vision, prompt intervention is required.
» Our advice: If you have an attack of glaucoma, sit down, keep your head still, hold it high, take painkiller. Call an ambulance or go to the emergency room. Only an ophthalmologist can provide effective help. The diagnosis is made through an interview, measurement of intraocular pressure and examination in a slit lamp; Gonioscopy is helpful.
What you don't know about glaucoma
Uveitis is accompanied by eye pain
Uveitis is manifested bypain in the eyesand headache, as well as poor vision, photophobia, redness, tearing, visual impairment, sometimes a significant increase in pressure in the eye. The causes of this eye diseaseThere are many. The most common are neglected teeth (with lesions at the roots) and untreated tonsils. However, in most cases, the cause of uveitis cannot be determined. It is only known that this inflammation is more common in people with connective tissue diseases, such as, for example, rheumatism or chronic rheumatism. Bacteria (staphylococcus and streptococcus) attack when the body's immunity weakens - they penetrate the blood and settle in highly vascularized tissues, including the eye membrane.
» Our advice: Go to an ophthalmologist because you need to get the right medications as soon as possible. They are selected depending on the location of the inflammation. The diagnosis is made possible by examination with a slit lamp. The patient should be referred to a dentist, ENT specialist, internist, a woman to a gynecologist, and a man to a urologist in order to look for outbreaks of infection. These can be antibiotics, sulfa drugs, corticosteroids, or pupil dilators.
Dry eye syndrome is manifested by pressure and slight pain in the eye
Dry eye syndrome is most often accompanied by pressure and slight pain in the eye, a feeling of sand under the eyelids, itchy eyelids, blurred vision, dried discharge on the eyelids. The conjunctiva is bloodshot. The cause of dry eye syndrome is an insufficient amount of tears or their incorrect composition - there is more water in them than the ingredient that keeps it on the surface of the eye (then the eyes water).
» Our advice: Avoid air-conditioned rooms and do not sit long in front of the TV. If you work at the computer, wear safety glasses. Use artificial tear drops during the day. If this does not help, go to an ophthalmologist who may suggest, for example, inserting special plugs for the tear ducts. For diagnosis, the Schirmer test and the tear stability test are used.
Optic neuritis - accompanied by pains when moving the eye
Optic neuritis can occur in both the visible and invisible parts of the eye. Regardless of the location, any inflammation of the optic nerve leads to poor visual acuity and poor color recognition. Additionally, pain may occur when the eye is moved, which is a result of the swelling of the sheaths of the optic nerve that touch the muscles that move the eyeball. The patient also has no reaction to light, he sees the central scotoma in the visual field examination. Optic neuritis, which affects the retrobulbar segment of the eye, is often the first symptom of multiple sclerosis.
» Our advice: Contact an ophthalmologist for an assessment ofif you really have optic neuritis - if so, he or she will recommend appropriate treatment. However, if he suspects a general disease, he will refer you to a neurologist. During treatment, you will have tests: visual acuity, anterior nerve, fundus and visual field, color vision, magnetic resonance and electrophysiological tests to get a diagnosis.
Sympathetic eye inflammation - severe uveitis
Sympathetic eye inflammation is autoimmune in nature and is most often the result of an injury to one of the eyes. Symptoms of sympathetic eye inflammation include corneal congestion, scotomas, loss of visual acuity, and loss of eye accommodation.
» Our advice: See an ophthalmologist, as untreated sympathetic eye inflammation leads to severe iritis with pain and photophobia. Diagnosis is based on an interview and slit lamp examination.
Eye cancer is rarely painful
Pain is associated with eye cancer, usually when the tumor puts pressure on the eyeball or nerve; additional symptoms include visual disturbances, sometimes exophthalmos (orbital tumor).
» Our advice: Go for an ophthalmological examination and computed tomography for diagnosis.
Glaucoma: Causes and Symptoms
Untreated glaucoma can lead to atrophy of the optic nerve and, consequently, to blindness. The disease is usually detected by chance. What are the causes of glaucoma and how to recognize its first symptoms? Listen to our expert prof. Iwona Grabska-Liberek, head of the Department of Ophthalmology at the Clinical Hospital W. Orłowski in Warsaw.
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