If your eyes are red, watery, and burning, there is only one thing you can and should do. Schedule an appointment with your eye doctor, optometrist or ophthalmologist. The best way to treat red, watery, and burning eyes is to first diagnose the cause of the irritation, which could range from eye allergies to conjunctivitis, better known as pink eye, and dry eyes.
Treating Eye Allergies
We hate to make the answer even more complex, but when talking about treating eye allergies, we must first determine the cause of the allergies. There are several subtypes/subdivisions of eye allergies, with the most common being seasonal allergic conjunctivitis (SAC) and perennial allergic conjunctivitis (PAC).
- Seasonal Allergic Conjunctivitis: SAC is generally associated with outdoor allergens, such as tree pollen (spring), grass pollen (summer), and weed pollen (fall).
- Perennial Allergic Conjunctivitis: PAC is generally associated with indoor allergens, such as dust mites, cockroaches, and pet dander.
In order to find out what, if any, allergens are affecting your eyes, consult with your eye doctor. He/she will help you determine the cause of your eye allergy and design a treatment plan to lessen your symptoms. Treatment options include: eliminating or avoiding the allergen(s) affecting you, over-the-counter medications (allergy eye drops and oral antihistamines), and prescription eye drops.
About 50 million Americans currently suffer from eye allergies. Are you one of them?
Treating Pink Eye
If the cause of your redness, tearing, and burning is found to be conjunctivitis, better known as pink eye, you have several treatment options available depending on the type of conjunctivitis affecting your eye(s). Antibiotic eye ointments or drops may help bacterial forms of conjunctivitis, while viral conjunctivitis will usually clear up by itself within a week. You should wait until you talk to your eye doctor before trying to self-medicate with any over-the-counter eye drops.
Treating Dry Eye
To learn more about dry eye and the available treatment options, please refer to our previous blog on the subject titled, “What is Dry Eye?”
Of course, these are just three possible causes of your red, watery, and burning eyes. As we mentioned before, the only way to truly know what is causing your condition is to schedule an appointment with your eye doctor, optometrist or ophthalmologist.
If you have any questions or wish to schedule an appointment with Anne Arundel Eye Center, please contact board certified ophthalmologist Dr. Samuel Boles, Dr. Corinne Casey, and the eye care specialists here at AAEC by calling 410-224-2010 or visiting AnneArundelEyeCenter.com today. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and YouTube as well!
For more eye care advice and information, please take a look at our previous blog posts.