Home | Health | Eye Care

Symptoms Of An Eye Infection

By: David Crawford

Read More About Eye Care

Conjunctivitis

The tissue which lines the eyelids and runs out over the eyeball is called the conjunctiva. An inflammation of this tissue is known as conjunctivitis. When the conjunctiva becomes inflamed there is burning and smarting of the eyelid, formation of pus, and reddened eyelids. Usually the eye when inflamed becomes exceedingly sensitive to light, and tears flood it constantly. In the morning the eyelids will be found crusted together. Doctors treat this condition according to the character of the germ that causes the inflammation and according to the severity of the infection.

Pinkeye is a common type of conjunctivitis. Shortly after this special type of germ gets into the eyes they become reddened, the lids are swollen and puffy and usually glued together in the morning. Pinkeye is usually spread by the use of a common towel, and sometimes by soiled hands.

In some instances the eyes become inflamed by germs which get in from contaminated swimming pools. Physicians are able to prescribe much more powerful germicides than boric acid, and in that way bring dangerous infections under control.

It is easy to transfer germs of this character from one person to another. The safe step is for people with infected eyes to use individual towels and to make certain that the hands are always thoroughly washed with soap and water whenever any contact is made with the eye.

Trachoma

One of the most wide spread diseases of the world is an inflammation of the eyes called trachoma, now believed to be due to a specific virus. The condition is so common in Egypt, Palestine, and India except among the upper classes-that it is almost a universal disease.

The infection is carried by the transfer of the secretions from the eyes through the use of the hands, towels, handkerchiefs, pillows, or even by sneezing. It has been thought, indeed, that in some areas the infection is carried by flies.

In this condition the eye becomes inflamed and red; then blisters and crusts form. The scarring and injury may change the shape of the eyelids. If the infection of the cornea of the eye becomes sufficiently severe the eyesight may be destroyed.

This infection should be avoided with every possible effort. People who are in an area where trachoma is common should be exceedingly careful about the use of common towels and about rubbing the eyes with the hands.

The modem treatment of trachoma using the sulfonamide drugs has been exceedingly helpful in stopping the progress of the disease.

In treating the symptoms of trachoma, including the inflammation and the secretion, attempts are made to check and remove the granules and to overcome the enlargement of the tissues of the conjunctiva. This is accomplished by the application of caustic substances such as sulfate of copper or nitrate of silver and by mechanical and surgical methods, such as the scraping or cutting away of the excess material. This demands the utmost judgment and care on the part of the physician, since over irritation demands soothing treatment. Consequently there is no routine treatment each patient must be treated according to the condition that exists at the time he is examined. It becomes necessary to keep the eyes clean for some time by the frequent use of solutions of salt or alkaline washes or other preparations which the physician may prescribe.

Tuberculosis Of The Eye

Among the most difficult of conditions that confronted physicians in years past was the infection of the eye by tuberculosis. Tuberculosis and syphilis are two diseases that can affect any portion of the human body. Since the discovery of the sulfonamide and the antibiotic drugs, physicians have sought in these new preparations new weapons of importance in stopping the destruction of the eye that inevitably results from infection with the germ of tuberculosis.

Almost everyone knows by this time that streptomycin has a special quality in attacking the germ of tuberculosis, but few people have realized that certain preparations of sulfonamide drugs, such as promizole, promin, and diasone, are also known to have capabilities in stopping this germ. Incidentally, one phase of the most recent studies relates to certain observations made with other diseases. Undulant fever was one of the most difficult conditions to control by various methods, and eventually physicians found that a combination of an antibiotic and sulfonamide was more effective in controlling the conditions than either antibiotic or sulfonamide drugs alone. Now, careful studies made at Johns Hopkins
University Medical School have proved that a combination of streptomycin and promizole is the most efficient method yet known for controlling tuberculosis of the eye. Before the method of treatment was tried on people with such infections, each of the drugs was tried separately and then a combination was tried on tuberculosis of the eye of rabbits. The eyes of all rabbits with such tuberculosis were found to be free of any evidence of tuberculous infection after four weeks of treatment with a combination of these drugs.

Thirteen out of fourteen people with tuberculous infections of the eye and with evidence of tuberculous infection elsewhere in the body were given the combination of streptomycin and promizole, and with results far superior to those which physicians had seen previously in treating such cases. The inflammatory symptoms disappeared, a change for the better began anywhere from nine days to three weeks after the treatment was begun, and the only disadvantage was the appearance of occasional toxic reactions to the drugs. Of course neither these drugs nor any others can replace dead tissues. They cannot remove the scars resulting from damaged tissues, nor can they overcome cataracts or any other irreversible changes. Inflammatory changes, however, which had not resulted in complete destruction of the tissues were completely controlled. Unquestionably this investigation with these favorable results means that a condition of the eye, which has been formerly responsible for a great deal of blindness, is now amenable to treatment.

Iritis

The iris is the colored portion of the eye. It can become infected and inflamed, due to various causes. When it is infected it becomes swollen, dull, and discolored. The pupil gets small, gray, and sluggish. There is pain, radiating to the forehead and to the temple, which is worse at night, and there is much disturbance of vision. In most infections of the eye the person who has an inflammation of the iris cannot stand to look at the light, and there is constant watering of the eye.

One of the most common causes of this condition is syphilis. However, the iris may also become infected by other germs and may be involved in rheumatic conditions. It is of the utmost importance to take care of this condition immediately, because the inflammation and infection may result in scarring which will either block the pupil entirely or bind the iris down in such a manner as to prevent its motion. Obviously, this will cause a permanent disturbance of vision.

When a doctor takes care of this condition he applies drugs which relieve the congestion and put the part at rest. Dilatation of the pupil will prevent the scarring and tend to break up the small scars that have already formed. Various preparations of atropine are useful for this purpose. There are other drugs which are anesthetic in character and which prevent pain. The doctor may prescribe also moist, hot compresses for several hours, which will tend to diminish the pain and the inflammation.

Of particular importance, however, is the treatment of this, as of other conditions, through the body as a whole. Syphilis affecting the eye means syphilis elsewhere in the body, and demands the kind of consistent and persistent treatment that is necessary for this condition. The rheumatic condition with which iritis is associated must be treated for the general rheumatic disturbance, with the detection, if possible, of the focus of infection in the body, and with the elimination of that focus when it is found. Other types of skeptic infection must also be controlled. When there is diabetes the treatment of the condition by diet and insulin, so as to control the diabetes throughout the body generally, is even more important than the treatment of the condition as it affects the eyes. Once the condition is healed, surgical operations of various kinds, including plastic operations, may be necessary to bring about normal restoration of the iris and thus to aid vision.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

About The Author
David Crawford is the CEO and owner of a Male Enhancement company known as Male Enhancement Group. Copyright 2010 David Crawford of www.maleenhancementgroup.com This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

Please Rate this Article

 

Not yet Rated

Click the XML Icon Above to Receive Eye Care Articles Via RSS!
Additional Articles From - Home | Health | Eye Care
Sign Up for a free account.
Our other websites
All about SEO
Beauty Tips Forum
Submit Articles
Member Login
Link Us
Submission Guidelines
Ezine Notifications
Article RSS Feeds
Sitemap
New Stuff
About Us
Developer
Good shopping portal
Link to Us
Contact Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service

counter easy hit

Powered by Article Dashboard