Pink Eye- What should you do?

A discharge is a prominent symptom of conjunctivitis. It usually causes the formation of a crust during the night that usually prevents your eyes from opening in the morning. The discharge and the gritty feeling may affect you from seeing normally. But if you experience blurred vision, extreme eye pain and sudden loss of vision visit an emergency.

The infection is limited to the membrane lining your eye ball- the conjunctiva, and this has nothing to do with the light sensitive parts of your eye and the optic nerve. Viral and bacterial conjunctivitis are both very contagious so if you meet someone with pink eye, avoid touching his hands as these will be infected due to itching in his eyes. If you touch his hands or surfaces he s touched, wash your hands with soap and avoid touching your eyes to prevent infection.

Wearing contact lenses that aren't cleaned properly or aren't your own can cause bacterial conjunctivitis. This is a highly contagious form of conjunctivitis, as we know. Never share contact lenses, eye make-up like kajal, mascara etc. Always use new brushes to apply make-up as older one's harbour bacteria and viruses. Throw away old make-up items as they also become hotbeds of contagions and may cause an eye infection.

Viral and bacterial infections are the commonest causes of conjunctivitis. Other causes are allergies, a chemical splash in the eye or due to the entry of a foreign object in the eye. Both viral and bacterial conjunctivitis occur along with colds or a respiratory infection, such as a sore throat. So never ignore a cold, get proper treatment for colds and sore throats to keep your eyes safe from infection too.