Brief overview
- Eye burning – Cause: Irritation of the eyes (e.g. by draught, screen work, defective vision, wrongly adjusted visual aid, foreign body in the eye (like dust, splash of a cleaning agent), infections, allergic reaction, certain medications (like eye drops), various diseases (like Sjögren’s syndrome, diabetes, rheumatism)
- Eyes burning – What to do? Depending on the cause, medical treatment is necessary (e.g. medication, removal of foreign bodies, rinsing of the eye, correction of the visual aid). Sometimes you can also do something yourself (e.g. relaxation exercises for strained eyes, first aid for foreign bodies in the eye, home remedies).
Eye burning: Cause
Burning eyes are a common symptom. Mostly a disturbance of the protective tear film at the eye is behind it:
Eye burning can affect one eye alone or both eyes at the same time.
Eye burning is usually harmless and disappears by itself after some time. However, sometimes it is caused by a more or less serious disease or eye injury. Here is an overview of the reasons why eyes can burn:
- Overexertion of the eyes (e.g. due to incorrectly adjusted visual aids, long computer work).
- (prolonged) wearing of contact lenses
- Allergy
- conjunctivitis (inflammation of the conjunctiva)
- Inflammation of the tissue between the sclera and conjunctiva (episcleritis)
- Inflammation of the eyelid margin (blepharitis)
- Corneal inflammation (keratitis)
- Inflammation of the sclera of the eye (scleritis)
- Sjögren’s syndrome (sicca syndrome)
- Diabetes mellitus
- Rheumatic diseases
- Injuries of the ocular surface
- certain medications (such as eye drops or ointments)
Burning eyes after eye drops
If you are using a preparation that causes these complaints, you should talk to your doctor about it. If necessary, he or she can prescribe a different drug or adjust the dosage.
Never discontinue medically prescribed medications without consulting your doctor.
Accompanying symptoms
- Watering eyes
- Itchy eyes
- Dry eyes
- Red eyes
- Swollen eyes
- Feeling of pressure on the eyeball
- Foreign body sensation in the eye
- Secretion discharge from the eye (pus, blood)
- Clogged eyes (especially in the morning)
Burning eyes: When to see a doctor?
If burning eyes persist for a long period of time, you should see an ophthalmologist. The visit to the doctor is also necessary if these accompanying symptoms also occur:
- eye pain
- reddened eyes
- secretion (pus, blood)
- fever
Extremely severe burning of the eyes, especially after contact with chemicals, is a medical emergency that can lead to blindness in the worst case. You should call 911 or go to a hospital immediately!
Burning eyes: examination & diagnosis
In order to initiate appropriate treatment, the attending physician must first determine the cause of burning eyes.
Medical history
- How long have your eyes been burning?
- Does only one eye burn or are both eyes affected?
- Do your eyes burn permanently or only in certain situations?
- Have you used medication such as eye drops?
- Do you often work on the computer?
- Have you gotten foreign objects such as dust, smoke, chemicals or other irritating substances in your eyes?
- Do you have any known allergies?
Examinations
He also checks the size of the pupils, the reaction of the eyes to incident light, and eye movements.
Other examination methods that can help clarify the cause of burning eyes include:
- Eye test (to rule out eyestrain).
- Slit lamp examination (for a closer look at different parts of the eye)
- Tear fluid examination
- Allergy test
- Eye swab (to detect possible bacteria, fungi, or viruses)
Burning eyes: treatment
Eye drops that alleviate purely the symptom – burning eyes – are sometimes enough to banish the discomfort. If, for example, frequent screen work is responsible for the burning eyes, eye drops can soothe the irritated eyes and keep them moist.
If a bacterial infection is the cause of burning eyes, antibiotic eye drops will help. If there is a viral eye infection, for example with herpes viruses (ocular herpes), the doctor will prescribe antivirals such as aciclovir. The agents prevent further multiplication of the viruses.
If an underlying disease such as diabetes is the cause of burning eyes, it must be treated accordingly. Then the burning eyes often subside.
Burning eyes: What you can do yourself
If your eyes burn because you have been looking at a screen for too long, relaxation exercises for the eyes are a good tip. They help the eye muscles relax and stimulate the production of tear fluid. Here are some exercises as an example:
- Every now and then, cover your eyes with your hands and let them rest like this for a few minutes.
- Place your thumbs on your temples and massage the upper edge of the eye socket (from the root of the nose outwards) with your index fingers.
- While working at a computer screen, close your eyes often for a few seconds. You can also try typing a few sentences “blind”.
If the burning eye is caused by toxins or chemicals, you should immediately rinse the eye with plenty of clean water. It is important that you consult a doctor immediately afterwards and, if necessary, bring him the relevant chemical, for example, if it is a cleaning agent.
If corrosive lime has got into your eyes, you must not rinse them under any circumstances! This would aggravate the burn.
Burning eyes: home remedies
Never place cold compresses or cold packs directly on the sensitive skin of the eyes, but wrap them in a thin cotton cloth beforehand. Remove them immediately when the cold becomes uncomfortable.
Never place cold compresses or cold packs directly on the sensitive skin of the eyes, but wrap them in a thin cotton cloth beforehand. Remove them immediately when the cold becomes uncomfortable.
