Red eyes with or without pain

A reddened eye can remain without pain, if it is a so-called “hyposphagma”, in German “Bindehautunterblutung”. In this case, a small vein in the eye bursts, which can be the case, for example, with high exertion. Within a few days, the blood is resorbed by itself, and the blood spot is completely reabsorbed.

A hyposphagma is in a sense a bruise in the eye that heals without any late effects and without pain. Corneal lesions lead to a reddened eye and so well again always pain, because the cornea is supplied with very fine and sensitive nerves. In addition to the traumas already mentioned, which can occur in sports injuries, toxic/chemical damage can also be the cause. Therefore, an eye shower, which we still know from chemistry lessons, helps here as well: To prevent permanent damage to the eyes, the eye must be rinsed gently with plenty of water if it has come into contact with chemical substances. In everyday life, we also encounter such substances in the form of pepper spray, which is also frequently used by the police to break up demonstrations.

Special case contact lenses

There are, however, cases in which it is possible to wait and see whether the symptoms improve by themselves: If contact lenses (possibly worn too long) are responsible for the reddened eyes, remove the lenses and wait to see if this helps and the redness subsides.

Home remedies

A classic household remedy that helps against reddened eyes is a broth of lavender and eyebright. These herbs can be bought in the pharmacy. They are boiled together in hot water and left to infuse for about ten minutes.Then pour off the brew and place the herbs on the eyes.

Of course you should take care that the herbs are not too hot! The procedure can be repeated several times a day. In case of allergy-related redness of the eyes, resting and cooling the eyes, for example with a cool pack, can also help.