Acute conjunctivitis (adenoviral conjunctivitis or pink eye) is an inflammation that can be caused by infections from bacteria or viruses. Pink eye can also be caused by allergy, eye injury or reaction to medication.
Pink eye affects nearly six million people in the U.S. every year.1 Anyone at any age can get conjunctivitis, although it is more common in children. It has been observed that pink eye is little more common in the spring and summer months and less common in the winter.
Acute conjunctivitis is highly contagious with intra-familial attack rates of up to 50 percent2-3 and 35 to 50 percent of patients develop complications.4,5 Unfortunately, many healthcare professionals believe that they can easily and accurately diagnose and treat pink eye patients based on clinical symptoms and signs, however, one simple misdiagnosis can lead to mistreatment driving the spread of disease.
Unlike bacterial conjunctivitis, which is usually self-limiting, acute conjunctivitis is associated with significant morbidity such as:
- Decreased visual acuity or light sensitivity from persistent subepithelial infiltrates (inflammatory corneal deposits)6
- Chronic epiphora (excessive tearing) from lacrimal drainage problems7
- Visual loss from conjunctival foreshortening and symblepharon (conjunctival scarring) formation8
Symptoms of acute conjunctivitis include:
- Eye redness
- Swollen, red eyelids
- Itching
- Burning
- Tearing
- Eyelash matting or crusting
- Foreign body sensation (feeling as if something is in the eye)
