In conditions caused by airborne and contact allergens, overall allergy symptoms may include eye problems that are collectively called allergic conjunctivitis. Typical signs include red, weepy eyes and inflammation of the eyelids. Conjunctivitis occurs when tiny allergenic particles in the air or certain chemical substances touch the eye and are ingested, causing allergic reactions. An abnormal immune system response sends histamines into the bloodstream. This creates inflammation and fluid accumulation in the mucous membranes, including the conjunctivas of the eyes.
Allergic Contact Dermatitis
Allergic contact dermatitis can cause severe inflammation of the eyelids, conjunctivas and local sinuses. Patients may have prolonged contact with an allergenic substance that gets into the eye, as in allergic reactions to ingredients in eye makeup. Additional sources of eye problems noted by the Mayo Clinic include contact with allergens in detergents, facial cleansers, bar soaps, deodorant sprays, medicinal creams and products containing formaldehyde and fragrance. Patients may also get eye allergy symptoms by transferring allergens from solvents or noxious weeds, such as poison ivy, from their hands to their eyes.
Pollen and Leaf Mold Allergies
Many allergic reactions that inflame the eyes and eyelids stem from airborne allergens. When the body absorbs these compounds through the airways or the mucous membranes, allergy symptoms affect these sites, as the University of Maryland Medical Center reports. Allergies to tree, grass and weed pollens and the spores of leaf molds, often cause conjunctivitis eye problems.
Doctors can frequently diagnose these outdoor allergies by season. Patients who experience red, watery eyes and puffy eyelids in the late winter or spring may be allergic to trees. Summer symptoms point to grasses, and fall to ragweed, the most common cause of pollen allergies in the United States. Patients who can't attribute their eye allergy symptoms to these seasonal sources may be affected by outdoor mold spores instead. Leaf mold can activate allergies whenever decaying leaves litter the ground. Breathing trouble usually accompanies eye problems caused by airborne allergens.
Indoor Allergies
Allergies to cats, dogs, dust mites and cockroaches have similar affects on the eyes as allergies to outdoor plants and indoor molds. Some allergy patients react to compounds contained in spores from molds that grow on walls and other indoor surfaces or to the fluids and waste of household pets, dust mites and cockroaches. These particles collect on floors and furniture and get stirred up by fans, breezes and foot traffic to become airborne. The Mayo Clinic relates that allergic reactions occur when patients inhale mold spores or other indoor allergens to which they have developed antibodies.
