Eye infection - Doctor or Ophthalmologist?
Posted , 3 users are following.
I've had an eye infection for about 5 weeks. My left eye has fluid building up as shown in the picture. In the morning there is small amount of white puss in the corner of the eye. The eyelid also feels itchy.
If I'm sitting upright, there's nothing irritating in the eye. But if I lay down, it feels like there's something near the edge of my eyelid but I can't see anything with a magnifying glass.
For the last two weeks I've been applying 3 Polysporin drops a day ( one ml contains 10,000 units polymyxin B and 0.025 mg gramicidin) . The infection does not seem to be getting better.
Are there any natural remedies I should try?
Should I see my GP about this or ophthalmologist.
Many thanks
0 likes, 3 replies
diannesk SailingDreams
Posted
You can go to a regular doctor who will send you to an ophthalmologist if necessary. Most important is to go to someone soon.
Since I already have an ophthalmologist, that would be my first choice.
Marina_Dee SailingDreams
Posted
See your GP. You may be developing Blepharitis as your eyelids look pink. The irritation could be a blocked gland in your eyelid. These are the meibomian glands that provide the essential oil that gives you good quality tears and when they start to fail it feels as though you have an eye infection. Its a complaint that is getting very common as we use computer screens a lot during our lives.
Stop using the Polysporin.
SailingDreams
Posted
Hi Folks. Here's an update to what I ended up doing.
I first tried over the counter Polysporin ($15 only in Canada) that had 10000 units Polymyxin B and 0.025 mg gramicidin. The puss and inflammation was less, but it didn't go away after 2 weeks of application.
On the 3rd week I visited my eye doctor (Doctor of Optometry). I was glad I went to her instead of the GP because a) she did a lot of testing with eye equipment she had, and b) it cost the same as my GP. She said that because there was puss, and all other tests were negative, she suspected an infection. She prescribed me Tobramycin and Dexamethasone Ophthalmic Suspension by Sandoz. This antibiotic also had a steroid which she said wasn't absolutely necessary, but might help. Cost = $90 for generic! Fortunately she had a coupon that dropped it to $52. Whew.
It's been two weeks now and there's been no puss or puffyness around the eye. So far the treatment has been successful.