Eye Problem Symptoms

Eye problems, ranging in severity from minor irritations to permanent blindness, can affect anyone regardless of gender, race or age. Sources for eye difficulties are similarly wide-ranging and include allergies, genetic abnormalities, traumatic injury, diseases and age-related degeneration. Knowing how to assess the symptoms of some common eye problems and eye emergencies may help safeguard your vision for the future.

Common Symptoms

• If your eyes are blurred or tearing, ask yourself a series of questions to pinpoint potential causes. If you have significant allergies or wear contact lenses, your symptoms may be related to these factors. If you have diabetes, be especially aware of blurry vision since visual changes of this sort may be related to serious problems controlling your blood sugar.

  If you have eye redness accompanied by a feeling similar to having sand in your eyes, check to see if irritating material is actually present. These sensations without an irritating source may be signs of scratches to the transparent outer surface of the eye, called the cornea. If your symptoms are not eased by rinsing your eye with saline solution or water, seek medical attention as soon as you can.

  A lump on one of your eyelids accompanied by pain may indicate an infection known as a stye. Warm compresses and over-the-counter pain relievers may help you while the infection passes. If your symptoms persist or worsen, seek medical help.

  Pain and mucus secretion accompanied by pink or red coloration in the whites of your eyes may be signs of conjunctivitis, a contagious condition also known as pink eye. This infection can be caused by viruses or bacteria and is typically not serious. If warm compresses and over-the-counter eye drops do not help your symptoms, see your doctor.

Emergency Symptoms

• Detached retina is an emergency eye problem that can result in catastrophic vision loss. Watch for sudden flashes of light appearing in one or both eyes, as well as the appearance of "strings" or spots in your visual field. You also may experience transient or partial vision loss. If any of these symptoms occur, see a doctor as soon as possible.

  Acute glaucoma is another medically urgent eye condition that can lead to blindness. If you have sudden decreases in vision or if your visual field seems cloudy, you should suspect the potential presence of glaucoma. You also may experience redness and moderate or severe pain in your affected eye.

  Eye pain accompanied by light sensitivity or dark spots in your visual field may indicate an inflammation of the inner eye known as uveitis or iritis. See your doctor as soon as possible to avoid permanent eye damage or blindness.

  If you experience tearing and blurriness accompanied by fever and tenderness and swelling in your eyelids, seek medical attention immediately to prevent blindness or other severe complications of the infectious condition called periorbital cellulitis.

Additional Symptoms

• Many other symptoms of eye problems are possible. Consult your doctor or eye specialist for further answers to your vision questions.