Cold sores, sometimes known as fever blisters, appear around the mouth, on the lips or on the gums. Highly contagious, cold sores are a common medical condition caused by a virus in the herpes family. The first symptoms of a cold sore include...
LASIK surgery is a type of corrective eye surgery that eliminates the need for further visual assistance such as eyeglasses or contact lenses. LASIK (an acronym for laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis) is performed when a doctor uses an eximer...
As increasing numbers of people are diagnosed with rosacea, research about different treatment options also expands. Adults, primarily those older than 30 years of age, who develop the reddened skin and extended flushing that are common symptoms...
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that Lyme disease is caused by a bacterium that deer ticks carry called Borrelia burgdorferi. When the tick bites the skin, the bacterium enters the bloodstream causing an infection. It is a...
Chlamydia trachomatis, a sexually transmitted bacterium, affected over 1.2 million people in the United States in 2008, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports. It is the most commonly reported sexually transmitted disease, or...
Gonorrhea is a bacterial infection that affects the urethra, rectum and throat of men and women. The Mayo Clinic says that gonorrhea can also impact the cervix. It is often spread through sexual contact or to an infant at birth from an infected...
Sinuses are hollow spaces in the bones of the face. Sinusitis or an infection of the sinuses is a common problem. Complications because of sinusitis are rare, because of the use of antibiotics, but they can occur in patients who take inadequate or...
Bloodshot eyes are characterized by the appearance of tiny jagged red lines on the white of the eye, or sclera. These lines are actually blood vessels that have become enlarged due to irritation or blockage. The amount of redness is not a good...
Waking up with an eye crusty with pus is unpleasant for both your toddler and you. Styes are common in children and result from a bacterial infection. In most cases, the infection causing the pus resolves without treatment, although a simple...
Eyebright, or Euphrasia nemorosa, has been used for centuries to treat a wide variety of ailments affecting the eyes. As with all herbs, there is always some dispute regarding their effectiveness; however, anecdotal evidence indicates that...
Chlamydia, among the most common sexually transmitted diseases, affects an estimated 100,000 pregnant women each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This disease not only poses substantial risks to women but also to...
The bird flu, also known as avian influenza, is one of the most serious forms of flu that humans can become sick with. According to the Mayo Clinic, more than half of all people who become sick with the avian flu die from its complications. The...
Trachoma is an infection of the eye caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis. The World Health Organization reports that trachoma affects approximately 84 million people worldwide, with more than 8 million suffering accompanying vision loss....
Eye irritation due to swimming, or chemical conjunctivitis, is a common problem experienced by those who swim in chlorinated pools. Caused by irritants such as chlorine, air pollution or chemical exposure, chemical conjunctivitis is an...
Bloodshot eyes occur when the blood vessels in your eye become irritated and enlarged, which makes them more visible to the naked eye. Bloodshot eyes may include bleeding, or a small, non-life threatening hemorrhage in the eye, according to...
Children can have vision problems at birth or develop eyesight issues later in life. However, HealthyChildren.org warns your child is more likely to experience abnormal vision if your family has a history of children with vision problems. The best...
Chlamydia is a bacterial infection that is typically transmitted through sexual contact with an infected partner. If the bacterial infection is spread to an infant during childbirth, a baby can develop a chlamydial eye infection--an infection more...
Though used for cosmetic purposes to change your eye color, colored contact lenses are still considered medical devices. Federal law prohibits sellers from providing you with any type of contacts, even colored lenses, without a valid prescription....
The medical term for eye allergies, sometimes called pink eye, is allergic conjunctivitis. It is an irritation or inflammation of the part of the eye called the conjunctiva. The conjunctiva is a piece of tissue that lines the inside of the eyelid...
Itching, burning eyes are not just from allergies. Although millions of people wear contact lenses without difficulty, dangerous complications, including conjunctivitis and sensitivity to lens solutions, can cause devastating results, even loss of...
Blepharitis is a condition in which seborrheic dermatitis affects the eye, and it is often the cause of a dry eyelid. The chronic condition usually resists treatment. Blepharitis causes inflammation of the eyelids, and typical symptoms include...
The eyes are important structures made up of the eyelid, the iris (colored part of the eye), sclera (white part of the eye), cornea (thin tissue layer over the iris) and retina (tissues toward the back of the eye). Sometimes, certain underlying...
Pinkeye, also known as red-eye or conjunctivitis, is an inflammation of the conjunctiva, the membrane that covers and protects the surface of the eye and the insides of the eyelids. The name comes from the characteristic red or pink look that the...
Eye mucus, or eye discharge, occurs when the external eye structures become irritated, triggering an inflammatory response. The discharge is characteristically thicker than tears and varies in quantity, color and thickness, depending on the...
Tinted contact lenses come in both prescription and nonprescription varieties, although the purchase of colored contacts without consultation from a medical professional is not allowed in the United States. Despite the legalities, cosmetic lenses...
The condition amblyopia, more commonly known as lazy eye, causes vision problems in around 2 percent of all infants. Lazy eye occurs when one eye struggles to see properly. Over time, an infant will favor the other eye, further weakening the...
Travatan (generic name: travoprost opthalmic) is a medication used to manage such diseases as glaucoma (a condition of increased eye pressure). According to Drugs.com, it increases the amount of draining fluid from your eye, subsequently...
Staph infections are a product of the staphylococcus bacterium, which resides on the skin of humans but can cause serious medical problems if it gets beneath the surface and infects the blood. These infections have a relationship with acne that...
If your toddler squints, tilts her head or rubs her eyes it’s time to schedule an eye examination. Kids don't know when they have vision problems, so they will make adjustments rather than complain. Knowing what to expect will make it easier...
