Eye Pain

Eye pain is very difficult to ignore, and can be the symptom of something fairly minor such as eye strain, or it can mean that you are experiencing an eye or health emergency.

Cornea problems, including abrasions or scratches, an infected abrasion (called a corneal ulcer), swelling (corneal edema), corneal dystrophies, and erosion of the cornea can cause eye pain. If you suspect that you may have an infected scratch or abrasion of the cornea, you should seek immediate medical attention.

Paralysis of the eye muscle can be extremely painful and may be cause by health problems such as a stroke, thyroid disease, multiple sclerosis, a tumor, and some palsies.

Vascular problems including blood clots, aneurysm, and high blood pressure, often cause eye pain, and sometimes a bulging eye or blurred vision.

When eye pain is accompanied by floaters, light sensitivity, a red or pink eye, or vision loss, you should seek immediate medical attention. Causes can include inflammation inside of the eye (often as a result of trauma or surgery), a tumor, fungal infections such as fungal keratitis or mucormycosis, glaucoma, Graves' ophthalmology, low pressure inside of the eye, inflammation of the optic nerve, and inflammation of the retina.

To learn more about vision disorders, click here to read Vision Disorder articles on The LASIK Directory.