Pink eye, also known as conjunctivitis, is a common eye condition that bacterial or viral infections, allergies, or irritants can cause. You may wonder if you have pink eye if you’re experiencing symptoms such as redness, itching, swelling, or discharge in one or both eyes. Taking a quiz to determine if you have pink eye can be a helpful first step in understanding your condition and determining if you need to seek medical attention.

This pink eye quiz will ask you questions about your symptoms, such as whether you’re experiencing redness, swelling, or discharge and how severe your symptoms are.

It’s important to keep in mind that a quiz is not a substitute for a proper medical evaluation. Only a qualified healthcare professional can make a definitive diagnosis and recommend the most appropriate treatment plan for your specific condition. However, taking a pink eye quiz can be a helpful tool in determining if your symptoms are consistent with pink eye and if you should seek medical attention.

If you do have pink eye, early diagnosis, and treatment can help prevent the spread of the infection to others and can also reduce the severity and duration of your symptoms. Treatment may include prescription eye drops or ointments and home remedies such as warm compresses and avoiding irritants.

If the eye is red and slightly sticky, itchy, or burning, this can indicate pink eye. Learn the most important facts about symptoms, duration, and suitable medication for conjunctivitis.

What is Pink Eye?

Conjunctivitis, or pink eye, is a widespread disease of the eye in adults and children. It involves inflammation of the conjunctiva, a thin, protective mucous membrane covering part of the eyeball and the inside of the eyelids. It can have various causes, such as infectious conjunctivitis or allergic conjunctivitis.

Causes of Pink Eye

The causes of pink eye can be quite different. The disease is divided into an infectious and a non-infectious form based on the triggers:

Infectious pink eye is mainly caused by viruses (e.g., adenoviruses, herpes simplex viruses) or bacteria (mainly staphylococci, pneumococci, and streptococci). Bacterial and viral pink eye is highly contagious. Therefore, it is important to follow hygiene rules to avoid spreading the germs to the other eye and other people. The incubation period for infectious pink eye is 5-12 days, depending on the pathogen. When adenoviruses are causes of conjunctivitis, this often occurs in the context of a cold. There are then typically also thickened lymph nodes on the neck. In the beginning, only one eye is usually affected, then the second eye is also affected after a few days. Pink eye can also occur with measles, rubella, and chickenpox.

Causes of non-infectious pink eye can be:

• Allergies (for example, hay fever).
• Foreign bodies in the eye
• Cigarette smoke, dust, drafts, UV light and chlorine (in swimming pools)
• contact lenses
• dry eyes

Pink Eye: Symptoms and First Signs

The following symptoms are typical of pink eye:

• Reddened, burning or itchy eyes
• Foreign body sensation or feeling of pressure in the eye
• Watery, mucous or purulent secretion
• Swelling of the conjunctiva and occasionally also of the eyelids
• Sensitivity to light
• Sticky eyelids in the morning
• Eyelid spasm

However, depending on the cause, the symptoms of pink eye may slightly differ:

• In bacterial conjunctivitis, the conjunctiva secretes a whitish-yellow secretion that accumulates in the corners of the eye and can cause the eyelids to stick together in the morning. Both eyes are often affected, as germs are unintentionally transferred from one eye to another.
• In the case of viral conjunctivitis, the eyes secrete a rather watery secretion.
• The eyes are swollen, with severe itching and foreign body sensation. Here, too, both eyes are usually affected.
• In allergic conjunctivitis, both eyes are very itchy, and there are usually other allergy symptoms, such as sneezing or rhinitis. There is a clear foreign body sensation, and the conjunctiva is swollen, the eyelids thickened, and the eyes water.

Pink Eye in Child and Baby

Pink eye is very common in babies and young children. The conjunctiva of infants and toddlers is much more sensitive to external influences such as drafts, cold, and germs. In addition, children often rub their eyes and thus spread the pathogens (smear infection).

As a parent, you should ensure that your child does not touch the infected eye and frequently wash his/her hands. To be on the safe side, your child should not attend kindergarten as long as the eye is red.

How Can Pink Eye be Treated?

Since pink eye can have various causes, the treatment options also look very different. For the layman, it is usually difficult to recognize what kind of pink eye it is. Therefore, going to the doctor is the right choice. He will look for the cause of the pink eye and recommend the appropriate treatment. In addition to examining the eye, a pathogen panel may also be necessary.

• In the case of conjunctivitis caused by bacteria, antibiotic-containing ointments or drops placed in the eye and thus acting directly on the spot are suitable. There are no effective medications against cold viruses or highly contagious adenoviruses, but the symptoms of conjunctivitis can be alleviated by cooling.
• In case of allergic conjunctivitis, you should avoid triggering allergens if possible. Anti-allergic eye drops or short-term eye drops containing cortisone can be used to treat itchy and watery eyes. However, only hyposensitization offers a causal treatment in which the triggering allergen is administered in tiny doses, and the body is thus accustomed to it.
• If external stimuli such as drafts, smoke, or sunlight are triggers for conjunctivitis, these should be avoided if possible. Eye drops with the moisturizing substances hyaluronic acid and dexpanthenol help with dry eyes. These moisturize, soothe and protect the eyes.

Contacts for Pink Eye

For contact lens wearers, keep your lenses off until the pink eye has cleared up. Then use new contact lenses or clean your contact lenses thoroughly and replace the case.

Duration of Pink Eye

In most cases, pink eye is harmless and heals within one to two weeks. However, conjunctivitis can also become chronic. Especially if the infection spreads to other areas of the eye, such as the cornea, medical treatment is necessary to avoid late effects.

Home Remedies for Pink Eye

You can support the healing of pink eye with some home remedies. Cool and quark compresses have an irritation-relieving, cooling, and decongestant effect. Black tea and the medicinal herbs eyebright and calendula also have an anti-inflammatory effect and can be applied to the eye as a compress. The use of chamomile or chamomile tea is less suitable because chamomile can cause allergic reactions.

How to Prevent Pink Eye

People sensitive to triggers such as smoke, dust, and drafts should protect their eyes from these external factors. If you have an allergy, it is also advisable to avoid the allergens as much as possible. Contact lens wearers should also clean their lenses regularly and thoroughly, give their eyes a break, and wear glasses instead.

Since eye dryness is also a possible cause of pink eye, it is important to reduce the risk of dry eyes by taking appropriate measures. For example, you can contribute to a good indoor climate with humidifiers and regular ventilation.

To prevent infectious conjunctivitis, never touch your eye with unwashed hands, and wash your hands regularly with soap. Suppose a family member suffers from infectious conjunctivitis. Special hygiene is called for in that case: towels and washcloths should never be used together and, if possible, should be put directly into the laundry after use.

How to Treat Pink Eye During Pregnancy?

Women can use most remedies for conjunctivitis during pregnancy and breastfeeding without any problems. This applies, for example, to eye drops containing antihistamines or to aciclovir ointment for infection with herpes viruses.

What Will Happen if Pinkeye Is Left Untreated?

Uncomplicated pink eye usually heals without consequences. However, if left untreated, there is a risk that the infection will spread to other parts of the eye and impair vision. Additional bacterial infections can also cause scarring.

Disclaimer

We can provide you with some informational questions that may help determine if you should seek further evaluation for pink eye. However, it is important to note that only a qualified healthcare professional can diagnose pink eye and provide appropriate treatment!