Your eyes can be irritated for a variety of reasons. It may be as simple as something in your eye, or it could be a sign of a more serious eye condition. But if the irritation lasts longer than a few hours, you need to have it checked by an eye doctor. Engle Eyewear in Wilkes Barre, has treated eye irritation and sensitivity for many years.
Common Eye Irritants
Here are some of the common types of eye irritants:
- Foreign objects (such as an eyelash getting in your eye - even when removed, it can leave your eye feeling itchy and inflamed)
- Allergies (can be seasonal or due to pet dander)
- An eye infection (sometimes caused by touching your eye with dirty hands)
- Environmental (things such as being exposed to smoke or chlorine from a swimming pool)
- Irritants (such as dust, perfumes, or disinfectants)
- Dry Eye Syndrome (can happen at any age, but occurs more often in older adults)
- Computer Vision Syndrome (from staring at a computer screen too long)
- Eye stye (a small, red bump usually caused by a bacterial infection)
- Ocular rosacea (similar to the skin rash, but occurring in your eyes)
- Glaucoma (when the fluid from your eye doesn't drain properly and causes high intraocular pressure)
- Blocked tear duct (which means fluids back up because they can't drain)
No matter what irritant you have, it usually causes eye sensitivity, meaning your eyes burn, are red, and feel itchy. Your eye irritation may be acute (temporary) or chronic (ongoing).
Treatment
After a comprehensive eye exam, we will discuss potential treatment options with you. Eye drops may be the best solution if you have dry eyes. Suppose you work in an environment where small particles can get into your eyes regularly. In that case, our Optometrist, can prescribe safety glasses to protect your eyes. If you have computer vision syndrome, we can prescribe blue-light-blocking lenses to help protect your eyes from getting itchy, blurry, and irritated. If you already wear glasses, we can suggest a lens with a protective coating for those that work daily with computers.
Schedule an Appointment
Call Engle Eyewear today at (570) 208-1111 for more information on eye irritation or to schedule an appointment with our eye doctor.