Valerie: It was very windy yesterday afternoon and I think I caught a twig in my left eye when I went out. I had enough pain at the time and my eye started to cry right away.
Dr Pierrat: You let him cry, I hope, without trying to rub your eyelid?
Valerie: Yes, I even tried to make myself cry more by staring at a point in front of me, but I was in pain and couldn’t help but pull my eyelid a little in an attempt to relieve myself. I immediately thought that there was something bothering me in it.
Dr Pierrat: Did you find something?
Valerie: Actually no… I tried rubbing very gently with a tissue, but I didn’t catch anything.
Dr Pierrat:And now, are you still in pain?
Valerie: A little, the light bothers me, that’s why I put on my sunglasses. But what is most unpleasant is this feeling of sand in the eye.
Dr Pierrat:This morning, weren’t the eyelashes a little stuck together?
Valerie: Ah yes, I forgot to tell you… But I put my eye under water and the small secretions quickly disappeared.
Dr Pierrat:Did you notice anything else? Do you see as well as usual? I imagine you tested your eyesight on that side…
Valerie: Absolutely. But my eye always weeps a little. However, I did not put my lenses, I said to myself that it was not very indicated.
Dr Pierrat: I will examine you. The right eye is not red, but on the left, indeed, it is very red. Don’t be afraid, I’m going to pull the eyelid up a little and you’re going to look down. Then we’ll do the reverse… I don’t see any foreign bodies. You must have spontaneously eliminated your little piece of twig but it created a little irritation.
Valerie: Ah, it’s like conjunctivitis?
Dr Pierrat:Absolutely. It is!
Valerie: But why does the eye turn red?
Dr Pierrat:Small vessels run over the conjunctiva, the white of the eye. When irritated, they react by expanding and becoming more visible.
Valerie: There’s no infection, then?
Dr Pierrat:A start maybe, but don’t worry: it doesn’t look too bad.
Valerie: Are you still going to give me a few drops to put in my eye to fix this?
Dr Pierrat:Just antiseptic drops. You had your eye a little stuck this morning, it is better to disinfect it.
Valerie: Of course, I will only put some on the left side?
Dr Pierrat: Oh no, on both sides, because the eyes communicate, so viruses and bacteria can travel from one to the other! You will put it on morning and evening for a few days. Don’t forget to wash your hands first. And above all, do not forget to throw away the bottle at the end of the treatment. Once they have been opened, the eye drops do not keep.
What to know about conjunctivitis
The conjunctivitis is an infection of the conjunctiva, the membrane that covers the eyeball. This is the most common cause of red eye. When it is accompanied by glued eyelashes in the morning, it indicates an infectious origin. Otherwise, an allergy is possible. The redness then affects in principle both eyes. You can also wake up in the morning with apparent red vessels that sign conjunctival hemorrhage. It’s no big deal and usually goes away on its own. In contrast, whether red eye is associated with decreased visionit is necessary to consult very quickly.
OTHER CONSULTATIONS WITH THE MEDICAL ADVISOR
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- Doctor, my ear hurts
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- Doctor, my fingers are still frozen
- Doctor, I had blood in my urine
- Doctor I have ringing in my ears
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- Doctor, I often feel nauseous
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Read also:
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