Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsBacterial Conjunctivitis SymptomsCausesDiagnosisTreatmentComplicationsPrognosis
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Bacterial Conjunctivitis Symptoms
Causes
Diagnosis
Treatment
Complications
Prognosis
Pink eye happens when there is an inflammation or infection of theconjunctiva, the transparent membrane covering part of the eyeball and inner eyelid. The eye’s blood vessels also become inflamed and more visible, causing eye redness. There are different types of conjunctivitis:viral, bacterial, and allergic conjunctivitis.
Verywell / Danie Drankwalter
Conjunctivitis is a common eye problem that affects nearly six million people in the United States every year.Bacterial pink eye is the second most common type, after viral conjunctivitis, and accounts for 50% to 75% of conjunctivitis cases in children.This form of pink eye is highly contagious and spreads through poor hygiene or contact with other people or insects.
The Eye Lens' Function and Structure
Bacterial conjunctivitis can affect one or both eyes. It can also start in one eye and then spread to the other.
Symptoms of bacterial conjunctivitis include:
Depending on the cause, some patients may have additional symptoms, such as eye pain and blurry vision.
What Are the First Symptoms of Pink Eye?
The four most common bacteria that cause bacterial pink eye in the United States areStaphylococcus aureus,Streptococcus pneumoniae,Haemophilusinfluenzae, andMoraxella catarrhalis.
What Is Conjunctivitis?
As part of the eye exam, your eye care provider may also flip your upper lids to examine the palpebral conjunctiva (the lining of the eyelids). They may also use special drops or dye to examine the cornea and other tissues for damage and inflammation and determine if the cause is viral or bacterial.
Some tests your healthcare provider may use to determine the cause of your pink eye include:
Home Remedies
Most uncomplicated cases resolve within one to two weeks.
Antibiotics
Antibiotic treatment will be recommended if:
Antibiotic eye drops or ointments are usually prescribed for these cases. With antibiotics, the symptoms may disappear in a few days.
When conjunctivitis is related to an STD, your healthcare provider may prescribe an oral antibiotic.Azithromycinhas already been demonstrated as effective in the treatment of chlamydial conjunctivitis, while gonococcal conjunctivitis will often be treated with ceftriaxone.
When an infant has neonatal conjunctivitis, healthcare providers will treat it immediately with erythromycin ophthalmic ointment.
Lifestyle Changes
To avoid spreading bacterial pink eye and speed up recovery, people who have the condition should avoid crowded places and take time off of school or work while they are symptomatic.
If you wear contact lenses, your healthcare provider will likely suggest that you stop using them throughout treatment. If you use hard lenses, ask if cleaning them thoroughly will be enough or whether you need to throw them away and replace them. Disposable contact lenses should be thrown away and replaced, but not worn until treatment is complete.
Symptomatic patients with conjunctivitis should avoid environments where they can have close contact with others. However, if you have conjunctivitis but do not have a fever or symptoms of bacterial pink eye, you may be allowed to remain at work or school with your healthcare provider’s approval.
How Pink Eye (Conjunctivitis) Is Treated
At-home treatments are usually recommended first. People may use over-the-counter artificial tears and ointments, as well as apply a warm compress over their eyes to relieve symptoms of bacterial pink eye. To make a warm compress:
You should see a healthcare provider immediately if you experience symptoms that are not typical with pink eye, including:
Complications from bacterial conjunctivitis are uncommon; however, severe infections can result inkeratitis, corneal ulceration and perforation, and blindness. If you experience any of the above symptoms or changes to your vision, seek medical assistance right away.
Left Eye Pain: Why It Hurts and How to Relieve It
Even though pink eye can be annoying and feels like it heavily affects the eye, it rarely affects people’s vision. Bacterial conjunctivitis will often resolve on its own.
A Word From Verywell
Bacterial conjunctivitis often causes eye discomfort, but typically does not affect vision. The disease is easily treated at home, and the symptoms can be relieved with artificial tears and ointments. People often start to feel improvement after a few days. Basic hygiene is vital to avoiding the spread of bacterial conjunctivitis. Simple measures such as avoiding touching your eyes and washing your hands often are essential while you still have symptoms.
7 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Azari AA, Barney NP.Conjunctivitis: A systematic review of diagnosis and treatment.JAMA. 2013 Oct 23;310(16):1721-9. doi:10.1001/jama.2013.280318American Academy of Ophthalmology.Bacterial conjunctivitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Clinical overview of pink eye (conjunctivitis).NYU Langone Health.Diagnosing conjunctivitis.Matejcek A, Goldman RD.Treatment and prevention of ophthalmia neonatorum.Can Fam Physician. 59(11):1187-90.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Pink eye: Causes and how it spreads.American Academy of Ophthalmology.Quick home remedies for pink eye.Additional ReadingAmerican Academy of Ophthalmology.Neonatal conjunctivitis.Center for Disease Control and Prevention.About chlamydia.Hutnik C, Mohammad-Shahi MH.Bacterial conjunctivitis.Clin Ophthalmol. 4:1451-1457. doi: 10.2147/OPTH.S10162.Merck Manual.Acute bacterial conjunctivitis.National Library of Medicine. Clinical Trials.The effect of oral azithromycin in the treatment of chlamydial conjunctivitis.Patient.Infective Conjunctivitis.Pippin MM, Le JK.Bacterial conjunctivitis.In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing.University of Iowa Health Care.Adult chlamydial conjunctivitis.Yeu E, Hauswirth S.A review of the differential diagnosis of acute infectious conjunctivitis: implications for treatment and management.Clin Ophthalmol. 2020;14:805-813. doi:10.2147/OPTH.S236571
7 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Azari AA, Barney NP.Conjunctivitis: A systematic review of diagnosis and treatment.JAMA. 2013 Oct 23;310(16):1721-9. doi:10.1001/jama.2013.280318American Academy of Ophthalmology.Bacterial conjunctivitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Clinical overview of pink eye (conjunctivitis).NYU Langone Health.Diagnosing conjunctivitis.Matejcek A, Goldman RD.Treatment and prevention of ophthalmia neonatorum.Can Fam Physician. 59(11):1187-90.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Pink eye: Causes and how it spreads.American Academy of Ophthalmology.Quick home remedies for pink eye.Additional ReadingAmerican Academy of Ophthalmology.Neonatal conjunctivitis.Center for Disease Control and Prevention.About chlamydia.Hutnik C, Mohammad-Shahi MH.Bacterial conjunctivitis.Clin Ophthalmol. 4:1451-1457. doi: 10.2147/OPTH.S10162.Merck Manual.Acute bacterial conjunctivitis.National Library of Medicine. Clinical Trials.The effect of oral azithromycin in the treatment of chlamydial conjunctivitis.Patient.Infective Conjunctivitis.Pippin MM, Le JK.Bacterial conjunctivitis.In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing.University of Iowa Health Care.Adult chlamydial conjunctivitis.Yeu E, Hauswirth S.A review of the differential diagnosis of acute infectious conjunctivitis: implications for treatment and management.Clin Ophthalmol. 2020;14:805-813. doi:10.2147/OPTH.S236571
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Azari AA, Barney NP.Conjunctivitis: A systematic review of diagnosis and treatment.JAMA. 2013 Oct 23;310(16):1721-9. doi:10.1001/jama.2013.280318American Academy of Ophthalmology.Bacterial conjunctivitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Clinical overview of pink eye (conjunctivitis).NYU Langone Health.Diagnosing conjunctivitis.Matejcek A, Goldman RD.Treatment and prevention of ophthalmia neonatorum.Can Fam Physician. 59(11):1187-90.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Pink eye: Causes and how it spreads.American Academy of Ophthalmology.Quick home remedies for pink eye.
Azari AA, Barney NP.Conjunctivitis: A systematic review of diagnosis and treatment.JAMA. 2013 Oct 23;310(16):1721-9. doi:10.1001/jama.2013.280318
American Academy of Ophthalmology.Bacterial conjunctivitis.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Clinical overview of pink eye (conjunctivitis).
NYU Langone Health.Diagnosing conjunctivitis.
Matejcek A, Goldman RD.Treatment and prevention of ophthalmia neonatorum.Can Fam Physician. 59(11):1187-90.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Pink eye: Causes and how it spreads.
American Academy of Ophthalmology.Quick home remedies for pink eye.
American Academy of Ophthalmology.Neonatal conjunctivitis.Center for Disease Control and Prevention.About chlamydia.Hutnik C, Mohammad-Shahi MH.Bacterial conjunctivitis.Clin Ophthalmol. 4:1451-1457. doi: 10.2147/OPTH.S10162.Merck Manual.Acute bacterial conjunctivitis.National Library of Medicine. Clinical Trials.The effect of oral azithromycin in the treatment of chlamydial conjunctivitis.Patient.Infective Conjunctivitis.Pippin MM, Le JK.Bacterial conjunctivitis.In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing.University of Iowa Health Care.Adult chlamydial conjunctivitis.Yeu E, Hauswirth S.A review of the differential diagnosis of acute infectious conjunctivitis: implications for treatment and management.Clin Ophthalmol. 2020;14:805-813. doi:10.2147/OPTH.S236571
American Academy of Ophthalmology.Neonatal conjunctivitis.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention.About chlamydia.
Hutnik C, Mohammad-Shahi MH.Bacterial conjunctivitis.Clin Ophthalmol. 4:1451-1457. doi: 10.2147/OPTH.S10162.
Merck Manual.Acute bacterial conjunctivitis.
National Library of Medicine. Clinical Trials.The effect of oral azithromycin in the treatment of chlamydial conjunctivitis.
Patient.Infective Conjunctivitis.
Pippin MM, Le JK.Bacterial conjunctivitis.In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing.
University of Iowa Health Care.Adult chlamydial conjunctivitis.
Yeu E, Hauswirth S.A review of the differential diagnosis of acute infectious conjunctivitis: implications for treatment and management.Clin Ophthalmol. 2020;14:805-813. doi:10.2147/OPTH.S236571
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