Why do my eyes turn red?
Red eyes usually mean redness of the sclera, the white membrane of the eye. The sclera contains a significant number of capillaries - the smallest blood vessels. Usually they are invisible, but under the influence of a number of circumstances, the blood vessels of the sclera can expand, the walls of the vessels stretch as they expand, and then we see them, or rather, we see the blood filling the vessels. The blood is red, causing the eyes to appear red.
In most cases, dilation of scleral vessels is caused by a sharp increase in blood circulation. This is how the body responds to a fairly wide range of problems. Blood is an internal transport through which nutrients are delivered and toxins are removed. Blood flow helps increase local immune defense and accelerates healing. In many cases, the redness of the eyes goes away quite quickly; this means that the blood supply to the sclera has returned to normal. If the redness persists for a long time, then, obviously, the problem that caused it is quite serious.
How to remove red eyes at home
If you are sure that there is nothing serious behind the redness, you can try to do without the help of a doctor and remove the redness of the eyes at home. A quick effect is possible only if the redness has become the body’s reaction to an external irritant - keep this in mind.
Folk remedies
To begin with, you can try traditional methods. For example, a tea compress on the eyes effectively helps relieve redness caused by lack of sleep, tobacco smoke or wind.
Brew regular black tea, without additives or flavorings, cool, dip cotton pads into the brew, squeeze lightly (but so that the pad remains well moisturized) and place on closed eyelids. Leave the lotions on for 5-10 minutes. After a while, the procedure can be repeated, but when repeating, be sure to use new discs.
Another popular folk remedy that will help get rid of red eyes is fresh cucumber lotions. Rinse the cucumber thoroughly, grate it on a fine grater, wrap the resulting mass in clean gauze and apply to your eyes for a few minutes.
Medications
We have already done a detailed review
for drops that can be used to remove redness from the eyes, so we won’t go into details. It is advisable to consult a doctor before using drops, since many of them have contraindications.
- "Okumetil" and Innoxa - vasoconstrictor drops help to quickly return the white color to the sclera. In addition to redness, the drops effectively combat eye puffiness. Recommended for people whose problems are associated with increased visual load;
- "Systane Ultra", "Gilan" and "Artelak Splash" are suitable in cases where redness is caused by dry eyes. These moisturizing drops mimic natural tears, which is why they are often recommended for people who wear contact lenses. Drops are excellent for preventing dry eye syndrome.
What to do if your eyes are red
First of all, you should eliminate the cause that caused the redness of the eyes.
If redness of the eyes is a consequence of overwork, you need to give your eyes a rest. Sleep helps eliminate redness: after all, when we sleep, our eyes rest. A full eight-hour sleep will in many cases help eliminate redness of the eyes.
In the modern world, many types of activities involve working at a computer. Your eyes get very tired if you have to look at the screen all the time. It is necessary to avert your eyes to the side, blink on purpose, and even better, give your eyes a rest by closing them for a couple of minutes from time to time.
Perhaps the redness of the eyes is an allergic reaction. It is necessary to remove anything that can cause allergies. If you start using new cosmetics, put them aside. Use only natural hygiene products. Avoid contact with pets.
If the redness of the eyes does not go away, you should consult a doctor.
Tear substitute drops - salvation from ophthalmic diseases?
Some redness in the whites of the eye is completely normal. Therefore, there is no need to immediately panic and grab the drops, which, according to the protein, will prevent blood stains.
Despite the fact that there are a lot of artificial tears, and they have different compositions, the effect of eye drops lasts literally for a couple of hours. Over time, addiction may develop and you will need to use the drops more and more every day.
The chemical components present in their composition begin to irritate the mucous membrane, which can lead to unpleasant consequences. In addition, tear drops only eliminate the symptoms, but do not in any way affect the causes of redness. Therefore, doctors recommend using them as an emergency measure and only in extreme cases.
Causes
Physiological causes of red eyes
Physiological causes of red eyes include:
- eye fatigue as a result of prolonged visual strain, including with incorrectly selected glasses;
- eye fatigue due to nervous tension;
- lack of sleep;
- strong physical activity;
- prolonged crying;
- persistent cough or sneezing.
Redness of the eyes of physiological origin does not lead to the development of inflammation. As soon as the factor that caused the redness disappears, the redness goes away without any consequences for the body. Eye fatigue usually manifests itself as reddening of the sclera towards the end of the working day or in the evening. In this case, redness may be accompanied by a burning or stinging sensation in the eyes.
Physical or chemical effects
Redness of the eyes can be caused by exposure to various irritants. The most typical situations are:
- water getting into the eyes;
- contact with eyes of household chemicals (detergents and cleaners, deodorants, repellents, etc.);
- exposure to smoke (including cigarette smoke) in the eyes;
- exposure to solar radiation (being in the bright sun without sunglasses);
- prolonged exposure to cold or strong winds;
- getting foreign objects (dust, debris, etc.) into the eyes;
- eye irritation from contact lenses.
If the eyes experience chemical or physical irritation quite often, this can lead to the development of various eye diseases, one of the symptoms of which will be redness, which appears during periods of exacerbation.
Ophthalmic diseases
Red eyes can be a symptom of the following diseases:
- conjunctivitis (inflammation of the mucous membrane of the eye);
- keratitis (inflammation of the cornea);
- inflammation of the lacrimal gland (dacryoadenitis);
- inflammation of the lacrimal sac (dacryocystitis);
- canaliculitis (inflammation of the tear ducts);
- blepharitis (inflammation of the eyelids);
- uveitis (inflammation of the choroid of the eye);
- stye on the eye;
- dry eye syndrome;
- glaucoma;
- optic neuritis;
- as well as other, more rare eye diseases.
Other diseases manifested by redness of the eyes
Various diseases can manifest as redness of the eyes. First of all, this:
- chicken pox. When chickenpox is active, the virus can enter the chamber of the eye, causing inflammation of the cornea and redness of the sclera;
- hypertonic disease;
- allergic diseases;
- diabetes,
- as well as a number of other diseases.
Tips for those who use contact lenses
If you wear contacts, give them up for a while in favor of glasses. During the forced break, the eyes will recover. Microdamages that could appear due to a violation of the integrity of the lens or incorrect fitting technique will heal.
Before the redness goes away, change your lenses to glasses
At the same time, the condition of the tear film will improve and the oxygen balance will be restored, but only if the condition of your eyes is not neglected. Otherwise, giving up contact lenses alone will not be enough.
If for some reason you cannot switch to glasses, even temporarily, give up long-term wear lenses in favor of daily wear products. Also, if possible, try to reduce your lens wear during the day, for example, if you wear lenses for 8 hours or more, try to switch to 6 hours of contact lenses.
When should you see a doctor if your eyes are red?
It is necessary to consult a doctor immediately if redness of the eyes is accompanied by symptoms such as:
- nausea and vomiting;
- Strong headache;
- blurred vision;
- Pain in the eyes;
- photophobia;
- any discharge from the eyes.
Treatment options
You can get rid of red eyes due to inflamed blood vessels only by knowing the cause of the phenomenon.
Important! If the problem is with contact lenses, you need to consult with an ophthalmologist: perhaps the patient was prescribed the wrong type of optics, or the person himself does not follow the rules for using the lenses, as a result of which he introduces an infection into the eyes.
Infectious lesions are treated with conservative methods : these can be antibiotics or antiviral drugs, both broad-spectrum and narrow-spectrum (if the pathogen can be accurately identified during diagnosis).
Patients with high blood pressure are prescribed antihypertensive drugs.
Prevention recommendations
It is worth noting! The main advice regarding prevention is to promptly eliminate ophthalmological diseases and general infectious pathologies.
This should be done only using those medications and procedures that are agreed upon with the attending physician.
If traditional medicine is used, it is also necessary to notify the ophthalmologist about their use.
People who work primarily at a computer are recommended to instill tear substitutes at least twice a day .
These are chemically neutral and harmless solutions that are cheap, so spending about 300 rubles a month on such a product is within the capabilities of anyone.
You should strictly control your sleep : preferably go to bed at the same time every day (plus or minus an hour), and an adult needs to sleep for about 8 hours: this is enough for the visual organs to rest and recover.
Symptom Description
Redness of the whites has a different character and can appear as a small red spot or dot, as veins of the same color, or it can completely fill the eye and therefore has many causes.
For your information! When nothing bothers you except the redness itself, and its occurrence was preceded by obvious situations (overwork, a night without sleep) - usually everything goes away by itself.
In such cases, the symptom occurs due to insufficient moisture in the eye and resolves itself when it is restored.
If the redness is accompanied by other manifestations of eye changes, it is worth talking about a pathological nature .
People need urgent assistance on the same day:
- after mechanical injuries (foreign body, blow, abrasion);
- for chemical burns of the eyes;
- with a significant, sudden deterioration in vision (it should be checked by covering each eye separately);
- with the appearance of rainbow circles around the lamps in a very painful eye, accompanied by headache and deterioration of visual acuity (usually this means an acute attack of angle-closure glaucoma); when comparing the density of the eyeballs through the eyelids, it is discovered that the patient’s eye is “hard as a rock”);
- with the sudden appearance of double vision;
- with the sudden appearance of exophthalmos;
- with pericorneal or mixed redness;
- for redness and infection of the eye in patients wearing contact lenses.
Read also
Partial optic atrophy (PANA)
Vision is the most important function in human life.
We receive 70% of information from the world around us through vision. The optic nerve is one of the most important elements of the organ of vision. It is through… Read more
Contact lenses/contact correction
Vision is one of the senses through which we learn about the world around us. Good vision is essential for a high quality of life. The most important characteristic in diagnosis is the acuity...
More details
Myopia
Vision plays a huge role for a person. Through the eye we experience the entire amazing and diverse world. A person receives 80-90% of information from the surrounding world through vision. Therefore, a huge tragedy...
More details
Blindness
Vision is a unique gift that nature has given us. We can truly appreciate it only when we lose. With a number of diseases, vision loss may decrease, sometimes almost to the point of complete blindness. Often…
More details
Osteoarthritis of the facet joints
Osteoarthritis of the facet joints occurs due to wear and tear in older people, as a result of overload, incorrect movements or posture during exercise, and can be a consequence of a sports injury. Usually,…
More details
Types of red eye syndrome
Depending on the location of the redness, there are several types of red eye:
- Conjunctival type
- redness along the arches of the conjunctiva. - Pericorneal type
- redness around the limbus (the junction of the cornea and sclera of the eye). - Mixed type
- a combination of conjunctival and pericorneal types.
