There are many different types of conjunctivitis and most are self-limiting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bacterial conjunctivitis has thick green\/yellow discharge. The eye can be stuck together in the morning but there is also usually discharge noticed throughout the day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other family members\/friends may be affected. Ensuring good hand hygiene is recommended to prevent spread. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It can be difficult to tell the difference between bacterial and viral conjunctivitis. Patients with viral conjunctivitis tend to have a current or recent viral illness. The discharge is thinner and can be watery. Often follicles\/papillae can be seen under the lids with viral conjunctivitis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some cases of viral conjunctivitis can be prolonged and require further treatment especially if involving the cornea and not resolving within 7 days as expected. Swabs are not sent routinely but if conjunctivitis is not improving as expected consider sending swabs (for eye viruses, bacteria and chlamydia\/gonorrhoea) and referring to ophthalmology. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Allergic conjunctivitis is common especially around the summer months. Eyelids can also have follicles and papillae noted on eversion. This can be seen with a hand held ophthalmoscope under high magnification. The characteristic sign of allergy is itch. Management is in the community in conjunction with optometrists. Typical treatments include sodium cromoglicate\/olopatadine eye drops and antihistamines. In those where there is co-existing eczema topical hydrocortisone to the lids only may be of benefit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Conjunctivitis in babies <4 weeks old should be referred for assessment due to the possibility of sexually transmitted infection. There is typically purulent discharge and a red eye. It can be bilateral and babies can be unwell. Swabs should be sent for chlamydia and gonorrhoea. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sticky eyes are common in babies due to their small nasolacrimal ducts and lid massage can help alleviate symptoms. They do not have discharge or a red eye and it tends to be unilateral. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
JC & BC 28\/1\/26<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Please see Lothian GP and optometry ophthalmology referral pathway<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Urgency of the condition<\/a> for details on how soon patients should receive an appointment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Patients who present with a problem with their only seeing eye should be advised to see an optician\/ophthalmologist for review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We require a referral letter for EVERY patient<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The preferred referral process is via SCI Gateway. If sending\/forwarding a referral via SCI gateway please include past medical history, allergies and medications<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you do not have access to fax or SCI Gateway e.g. if you have arranged an appointment out of hours please send a written referral letter with the patient to bring to their appointment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Only if SCI Gateway is unavailable should a letter be typed or handwritten. Please write legibly and include your examination findings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you have arranged an appointment in the acute referral clinic and you are referring from within another hospital in Lothian please use TRAK to type the referral letter. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There are many different types of conjunctivitis and most are self-limiting. Bacterial conjunctivitis has thick green\/yellow discharge. The eye can be stuck together in the morning but there is also usually discharge noticed throughout the day. Other family members\/friends may be affected. Ensuring good hand hygiene is recommended to prevent spread. It can be difficult<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":4090,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[481],"class_list":["post-3817","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","category-conjunctivitis"],"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"rttpg_featured_image_url":null,"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"NHS Lothian","author_link":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/author\/nhs-lothian\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":" Conjunctivitis<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"There are many different types of conjunctivitis and most are self-limiting. Bacterial conjunctivitis has thick green\/yellow discharge. The eye can be stuck together in the morning but there is also usually discharge noticed throughout the day. Other family members\/friends may be affected. Ensuring good hand hygiene is recommended to prevent spread. It can be difficult","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3817"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3817\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26390,"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3817\/revisions\/26390"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4090"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apps.nhslothian.scot\/refhelp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}How to refer:<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n