Eye discomfort and redness in adults

When to seek medical advice

Get emergency medical care if you have eye discomfort and redness accompanied by:

Severe eye pain or irritation
Direct injury to the eye
Swelling in or around your eyes
Discharge of blood or pus from your eyes
Double vision or loss of vision
Sudden or new appearance of halos around lights
Nausea or vomiting
Sudden, severe headache

Find possible causes of eye discomfort and redness based on specific factors. Check one or more factors on this page that apply to your symptoms.

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American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. https://orthoinfo.aaos.org. Accessed Nov. 20, 2017.
Petty RE, et al., eds. Textbook of Pediatric Rheumatology. 7th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Elsevier; 2016. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed Nov. 20, 2017.
Elsevier Point of Care. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed Nov. 20, 2017.
Kasper DL, et al., eds. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine. 19th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Education; 2015. http://accessmedicine.mhmedical.com. Accessed Nov. 20, 2017.
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National Eye Institute. https://nei.nih.gov. Accessed Dec. 5, 2017.
Medical review (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Nov. 8, 2017.

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