Eye conditions are very common. At some point in our lives, most of us will be affected by one. Both children and adults are vulnerable to eye conditions. Our eyes help us make sense of the world, take in the scenery and experience the beauty all around us. Because sight is the most valuable of all our senses, it is important to maintain proper eye health.
Below, we’ve listed some of the symptoms of the most common eye conditions.
Refractive Errors
Refractive Errors encompass a number of eye conditions that are caused by incorrect refraction of light through the cornea and lens. These eye conditions include nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism, and presbyopia.
Symptoms of any refractive errors include:
- Double vision
- Haziness
- Glare of halos around bright lights
- Squinting
- Headaches
- Eyestrain
Cataracts
Cataracts are an eye condition more common in older people. Cataracts are cloudy areas that develop within the eye lens. When you have a cataract, less light is able to reach your retina, making it more difficult to see.
Symptoms of cataracts are more subtle than other eye conditions. Cataracts develop slowly over time, so it is important to attend regular eye tests to make sure that any cataracts are caught early. If they get too thick, cataracts require surgery to remove.
Find out more about cataracts.
Dry Eyes
The eye condition known as ‘dry eyes’ occurs when the tear glands can’t make enough tears and the eyes cannot stay lubricated. Dry eyes are also a side effect of paralysis, lazy eye and other conditions that cause muscular complications in the face.
Symptoms of dry eye include:
- Dryness in the eye
- Discomfort
- Itching
- Burning sensation
Glaucoma
This eye condition causes pressure to build up in the eye that in turn causes gradual damage to the optic nerve. Without treatment, glaucoma can cause permanent blindness. Less commonly, glaucoma can be caused by eye injury, infection, or inflammatory disorders.
Unfortunately, glaucoma displays very few symptoms, although sometimes
the pressure can be felt. The early stages of glaucoma can only be detected with an eye test.
Find out more about glaucoma.
Pink Eye
Pink Eye (also called conjunctivitis) is an eye condition caused by irritation to the eye. There are three types of conjunctivitis, depending on the cause: viral, bacterial and allergic conjunctivitis. Regardless of the cause the results are always the same: inflammation of the thin covering on the surface of the eye, the conjunctiva.
Unsurprisingly, the key symptom of Pink Eye is a pink eye. Other symptoms include:
For allergic conjunctivitis
- Eye watering
- burning sensation
- itchiness
- light sensitivity
- runny nose
For viral conjunctivitis
- Eye watering
- Itchiness
For bacterial conjunctivitis
- A sticky, yellowish discharge in the corner of the eye
- This discharge can cause the eyelids to stick together
As you can see, many eye conditions share symptoms. If you start to display any eye condition symptoms, you should visit an eye doctor. To maintain good eye health, it is important to schedule an eye test on a regular basis. Book an appointment with an Eyesite optometrist today.
