CONJUNCTIVITIS ( PINK EYE ) – MAJOR TYPES OF IT

OVERVIEW

Pink eye that is also known as conjunctivitis, is a very common disease that occurs in the eyes. In this kind of disease the inflammation of the conjunctiva of the eye takes place. As eyes are one of the most sensitive organ of the human body, due to this inflammation that takes place, the blood vessels that are present in the eye also well up and due to irritability as well the eyes get pink colored, hence the name pink eye.

The conjunctiva whose inflammation takes place in this kind of disease is a very thin and clear tissue of the eye that lies over the white part of the eye and it also lines the inside part of the eyelid.

There is no specific causative agent for this kind of disease, this disease can happen as a result of slight irritability in the eyes that can be caused due to any of the reasons such as shampoo, any irritants, bacteria virus, etc. This is more likely of an allergic reaction that occurs in individuals and can occur due to measles as well

This kind of disease is highly contagious and can happen to people of any age group. It is more common on children especially amongst children between 3 to 10 years of age as these children are most likely to come in contact with the bacteria and viruses while playing. However, though common, this type of disease is very rarely serious.

This type of disease is very irritating in the eyes, but it rarely affects the infected person’s vision. There are various treatments that are available for this kind of disease and these treatments that are available help in releaving the discomfort that is caused in the eyes. As this type of disease is very contagious, early diagnosis of the disease and getting the infected person treated at the proper time might help in limiting the spread of the disease.

 

TYPES OF CONJUNCTIVITIS

The type of pink eye disease means the type of organism that causes that specific type of disease and also at which place and in which age group the disease the disease occurs. There are various types of pink eye disease that are present currently and are highly contagious. Some of the types of the pink eye disease are listed below :

Viral conjunctivitis disease

• This type of pink eye disease is the most common type of conjunctivitis that is present currently
• This type of viral infection can be transmitted when the respiratory droplets of an infected person comes in contact with the eyes of a healthy person or when a person touches his or her eyes without washing their hands the virus that might be present on the hands can get in to the eyes and then eventually this disease will be caused.
• This type of pink eye disease is usually unilateral (occurs in one eye) and not bilateral (occurs in both the eyes)
• This type of pink eye disease usually does not require any kind of treatment and it gets cured by its own after a short span of time.

Bacterial conjunctivitis disease

• Bacterial conjunctivitis disease is also a very common type of pink eye disease and it is also highly contagious like other types of it
• In this kind of pink eye disease, the eye produces a thick white, yellow or green coloured discharge
• Like viral conjunctivitis, bacterial conjunctivitis also do not require any specific treatment and the disease gets cured by itself within a span of about one to two weeks
• If the disease tends to get severe the doctor might prescribe the patient for an antibiotics course.
• This type can also occur due to sexually transmitted disease like gonorrhea and chlamydia (gonococcus conjunctivitis and chlamydial conjunctivitis)

Allergic conjunctivitis disease

• Allergic conjunctivitis type of pink eye disease is usually caused by common allergies of the eye.
• This kind of pink eye disease is non – contagious unlike the other types of this disease and it is also a common type of pink eye disease
• The most common and the characteristic symptoms of this allergic type of pink eye disease are itchy, red and swollen eyes
• These symptoms can be cured or prevented as well with the help of anti – histamine eye drops or pills that control these kind of allergic reactions.
• This type of pink eye disease can either occur seasonally or year – around depending upon an individual’s allergies.

Giant papillary conjunctivitis disease

• Giant papillary type of pink eye disease is a less common form of this type of disease
• This type of disease most commonly affects people who wear soft type of contact lenses.
• Giant papillary type of pink eye disease might cause intolerance of the soft contact lenses. Itching that causes the redness of eyes, a heavy and thick discharge from the eyes and tearing and red burn on the undersides of the eyelids on each side.
• This type of disease is usually bilateral (affects both the eyes) unlike viral conjunctivitis that is unilateral (affects only one eye)
• For the treatment for this kind of disease the people who are infected by this type are asked to stop wearing the contact lenses for some period of time
• The doctor might also ask the infected person to switch to a different type of contact lens to reduce the chance of conjunctivitis recurrence.

Neonatal conjunctivitis disease

• Neonatal pink eye disease as the name itself suggests occurs in neonates, that is in new born babies
• The most common reason for the development of this kind of disease in neonates or new borns is the inflammation or blockage of the tear ducts
• Another reason due to which this type of disease can be caused in neonates is when the newborns are exposed to sexually transmitted diseases when they pass from the birth canal of a mother who has an active infection present there.
• The most common form and example of neonatal conjunctivitis is gonococcal conjunctivitis (sexually transmitted disease )
• This form of pink eye disease can actively be treated and prevented as well in new borns with medications if they are prescribed at the correct time

 

Chemical pink eye or toxic conjunctivitis

• Chemical pink eye as the name itself suggest occurs from the chemicals in the things that we are exposed to in our day to day lives
• The chemical irritants might range from mild to severe
• The mild irritants include diesel exhaust, perfumes, cigarette smoke and various certain eye drops as well
• The severe or more serious chemicals may require an immediate treatment.
• The mild irritants can get cured by themselves over a period of about 1 – 2 weeks