CORNEAL ULCER

SYMPTOMS

The first thing a person may notice are symptoms of infection that include:

• Watery eye
• Itchy eye
• Pink or red eye
• Burning sensation in the eye
• Sensitive to light
• Discharge in the eye

Meanwhile, symptoms for corneal ulcer alone include:

• Sore eye
• Eye inflammation
• Blurred vision
• Excessive tearing
• Swollen eyelids
• Foreign body sensation
• White spot on the cornea
• Eye discharge or pus
• Light sensitivity

All corneal ulcer symptoms are serious and must be treated right away to prevent complications such as blindness. 

DIAGNOSIS

In diagnosing a corneal ulcer, an ophthalmologist may examine your eye and ask for your symptoms. Also, an ophthalmologist may check your eye using a test called “fluorescein eye stain” to determine if you have corneal ulcer or not.

If your doctor found out that you have corneal ulcer, he/she will analyze its cause. To do that, the ophthalmologist will put numbing drops on your eye to gently scrape some sample. Afterward, the test will indicate if the ulcer carries fungi, viruses, or bacteria.

TREATMENT

Once an ophthalmologist finds out the cause of your corneal ulcer, he/she may prescribe an antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial eye medication to cure the underlying issue. However, if the infection is too bad, your doctor will conduct further examinations to figure out the cause of the infection. Furthermore, if your eye is swollen or inflamed, you might need to apply corticosteroid drops to your eyes. 

During the treatment, your doctor may ask you to avoid these things:

• Wearing makeup
• Wearing contact lenses
• Touching your eye
• Taking other medications

In severe cases, a corneal transplant will be needed to replace the cornea. During this process, the surgeon will remove the damaged tissue and replace it with healthy tissue.