Conjunctivitis

Conjunctivitis is a clinical condition resulting from the inflammation or infection of the conjunctiva tissue of the eye. It may develop due to the factors of bacterial, viral, allergic and chemical origin and these are the most common causes for reddish or pink eye. Conjunctivitis usually does not affect the vision. While the early diagnosis enables the relief of the symptoms, it also limits the likely complications of its contagiousness.

Allergic conjunctivitis: Allergic conjunctivitis, which may lead to the complaints like itching, burning, stinging, redness and watering of the eyes, the light sensitivity and the swelling of the eyelids, is encountered more frequently in the children and the young. A significant proportion of these patients may also have asthma, eczema and allergic flu. Tree pollens in the spring, solar rays and grass pollens in the summer and herb pollens in the autumn are the main reasons of the condition, while the dust, mold, animal hair, cosmetics, cleaning products, foodstuffs, contact lenses and contact lens solutions may also result in allergy. The primary target in the treatment of allergic conjunctivitis is to identify and stay away from the allergen. Washing our eyes with plenty of cold water if possible and avoiding scratching our eyes will enable the relief of the symptoms. Allergic conjunctivitis is a disease, which may be treated to a great extent via a stepped medical therapy. It is important that the therapy is applied under the control of a physician.

Viral and Bacterial Conjunctivitis: Usually affecting both eyes, these types of conjunctivitis have the self-limiting character and they may produce clinical findings together. They may develop as a result of the viral and bacterial upper respiratory infections. Moreover, the prolonged contact lens use or the use of incorrect contact lenses in particular constitutes an isolated risk factor for the conjunctivitis. They may cause redness, pain, stinging, watering, light sensitivity and yellow-green eye discharge. While the prolonged or untreated infections may result in impaired vision through the damage of the corneal tissue, the infections with the potential of spreading to the surrounding tissues may lead to much more serious consequences especially in the children. While the treatment for the viral conjunctivitis essentially aims at preventing the contagiousness and relieving the symptoms, the antibiotics targeting the infectious agent constitute the basis for the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis. In the cases of bacterial conjunctivitis, it may be necessary to take the culture samples from the conjunctiva. On the other hand, the cases of viral conjunctivitis may necessitate a treatment and follow-up period of as long as 1-2 years by causing the immune reactions in the corneal tissue in the long term.

ASSOC. PROF. M. NECATİ DEMİR