Eye redness redness in the eye

In most cases, redness of the eye is due to vasodilation, underlying irritation, inflammation, or increased intraocular pressure. Thus, allergies, conjunctivitis, corneal or iris inflammation may be the cause of the reddened eye, or headache and glaucoma ("green star"). Eye redness can also be signs of tiredness and dry eyes.

Redness of the eyes is often harmless, but may also be associated with more serious illnesses. (Image: Rob hyrons / fotolia.com)

Eye redness in inflammatory processes

The inflammations can be triggered physically, chemically, allergic, bacterially, virally or by fungi. To distinguish between conjunctivitis (conjunctivitis) and corneal inflammation (keratitis) from the underlying inflammation of the iris and the ciliary body (iridocyclitis).

In conjunctivitis, the eye is light red and the individual blood vessels in the eye white are easily recognizable. The redness is on the outside, especially intense in the direction of the eyelids and corners of the eyes. If only the cornea is affected, redness dominates towards the middle.

If no individual vessels are recognizable and a bluish-red color of the conjunctiva at the edge of the cornea appears, inflammation of the iris and the ciliary body is more likely. The iris (the area with the color pigments that determine our eye color) is then additionally clouded. In acute glaucoma case, all characters can appear mixed.

Therapy is based on the underlying disorder, which is determined by asking for further eye discomfort (e.g., blurred vision, concomitant eye pain), known allergies (e.g., pollen allergy), previous accidents, family history, general symptoms, and in-depth investigation. If there is extensive bleeding without any visible veins in the eye white, it is probably a hyposphagma. (Dipl.Päd. J. Viñals Stein, non-medical practitioner)
Professional supervision: Barbara Schindewolf-Lensch (doctor) Also read:
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