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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffRed eye, affecting one or both eyes, is a common reaction to poor lighting, lack of sleep, overuse of alcohol and other ordinary stresses on your eyes. Many illnesses and eye conditions also can cause red eye.
The redness comes from expansion of blood vessels on the surface of your eye in response to an irritant. The result is mild or severe inflammation — in other words, a red eye.
Inflammation takes place in the membrane covering the white of your eye and lining your eyelid. This membrane is called the conjunctiva (kun-JUNK-tih-vuh). Inflammation of the conjunctiva due to infection or injury is called conjunctivitis (kun-junk-tih-VY-tis).
Occasional, brief periods of red eye are usually no cause for worry. But persistent red eye, especially with eye pain or vision changes, can signal a more serious problem.
- Jacobs DS. Evaluation of the red eye. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Sept. 17, 2008.
- Galor A, et al. Red eye for the internist: When to treat, when to refer. Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine. 2008;75(2):137-144.
- Leibowitz HM. The red eye. The New England Journal of Medicine. 2000;343(5):345-351.
- Mahmood AR, et al. Diagnosis and management of the acute red eye. Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America. 2008;26(1):35-55.
- Wilkinson JM (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Oct. 3, 2008.
