This is what causes the whites of your eyes to appear reddish or pink.Pink eye is commonly caused by a bacterial or viral infection, an allergic reaction, or — in babies — an incompletely opened tear duct.Though pink eye can be irritating, it rarely affects your vision. Microsoft may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. In rare cases, these bacteria can cause infants to develop a serious form of conjunctivitis known as ophthalmia neonatorum, which needs treatment without delay to preserve sight. Instead, use a warm washcloth to soften the crust off your eyelids and gently wipe it away.
Your body's release of histamine can produce a number of allergy signs and symptoms, including red or pink eyes.If you have allergic conjunctivitis, you may experience intense itching, tearing and inflammation of the eyes — as well as sneezing and watery nasal discharge.

Pink eye is what people use to describe a condition called conjunctivitis, which is an inflammation of the If you have pink eye but no fever or other symptoms, it could be OK to go back to school or work if you have your doctor's approval, according to the As the nickname implies, pink eye often shows up as pinkness or redness in the eye. Sometimes flushing and cleaning the eye to rid it of the chemical or object causes redness and irritation. Because pink eye can be contagious, early diagnosis and treatment can help limit its spread.There are serious eye conditions that can cause eye redness. Signs and symptoms, which may include watery eyes and a mucous discharge, usually clear up on their own within about a day.If initial flushing doesn't resolve the symptoms, or if the chemical is a caustic one such as lye, you need to be seen by your doctor or eye specialist as soon as possible. For instance:Keep in mind that pink eye is no more contagious than the common cold. What You Need to Know . When small blood vessels in the conjunctiva become inflamed, they're more visible.

It's characterized by redness and a gritty sensation in your eye, along with itching. “Treatment is just a matter of extracting yourself from what the precipitating factor was.”Chemicals, fumes, or smoke getting into the eye can cause irritant conjunctivitis, a non-contagious form of the condition. “As it’s exposed to air along the lining of your eyelid, it dries and almost creates a crust along each of your eyelashes.” In fact, you can wake up in the morning with your eye crusted shut.Resist the urge to tug at your encrusted lashes because if you accidentally pull them out, you can create space for bacteria to enter and cause additional problems.
This type of pink eye clears up quickly and in some cases resolves in as little as 48 hours. But if you have allergies and are experiencing serious irritation, redness, tearing, or itching in your eyes, it could be a sign of allergic conjunctivitis, which is not infectious or contagious and can be treated using allergy eye drops or oral allergy medications.“Allergic conjunctivitis does not typically present with discharge as the infectious conjunctivitis does, but more so with irritation, itching, and redness,” Dr. Bell says.If you’ve just come down with a seasonal bug and now your eyes are irritated, it could be one of the more annoying pink eye symptoms.“If you were coughing yesterday and then you touched your face or your eyes, you could have unintentionally spread the same pathogen that causes pink eye,” Dr. Hanak says.“As a result of the dryness, the eye can get it can inflamed and irritated and become red,” says Dr. Bell. Microsoft may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. Microsoft may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. It's okay to return to work, school or child care if you're not able to take time off — just stay consistent in practicing good hygiene.Newborns' eyes are susceptible to bacteria normally present in the mother's birth canal. Prompt evaluation and treatment by your doctor for eye pain, a feeling that something is stuck in your eye (foreign body sensation), blurred vision or light sensitivity can reduce the risk of complications.Practice good hygiene to control the spread of pink eye. Pink eye, also known as conjunctivitis, is a very common—and sometimes contagious—eye inflammation. Microsoft may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩ Association of Optometrists. Most allergic conjunctivitis can be controlled with allergy eyedrops.Irritation from a chemical splash or foreign object in your eye is also associated with conjunctivitis. The affected eye may have increased tears or be "stuck shut" in the morning. All rights reserved.

Persistent symptoms could also indicate that you still have the foreign body in your eye — or possibly a scratch over the cornea or the covering of the eyeball (sclera).In both children and adults, pink eye can cause inflammation in the cornea that can affect vision.