Conjunctivitis treatment over the counter is something that you might want to consider to expedite the healing of your eye infection.
Also known as a pink eye or madras eye, the effect of this condition includes the inflammation of the inner eyelid and the outermost layer of the eye. This is attributed to an allergic reaction. It can also be caused by a viral or bacterial infection.
Conjunctivitis does not really need medical treatment because it can go away on its own in 1 – 2 weeks. However, you need to make sure you keep it clean and you should never rub your eye – even when it feels itchy.
The only conjunctivitis treatment over the counter that we can recommend is lubricant eye drops. They will help with the stickiness of your eyes and the soreness. Make sure you follow the instructions on the manual strictly so you will not get into any trouble or make your condition a lot worse.
Other home remedies that you can do include the following:
- Refrain from using of contact lenses. You will have to make do with those nerdy glasses in the meantime.
- Gently clean the sticky substance on your eyes. This usually happens in the morning. Use cotton wool soaked in water to gently remove it.
- Keep your hands clean. This will also prevent the infection from affecting other people too.
Prescribed Conjunctivitis Treatment
With the treatments mentioned above, especially the conjunctivitis treatment over the counter, your eye should be healing in a week’s time. But if you notice no improvement after 7 days, it is best to consult your doctor.
If they feel it is necessary, they will prescribe you with antibiotics. The medication may include Chloramphenicol or Fusidic acid.
Chloramphenicol is in an eye drop form that you need to put in the infected eye every two hours for two days. After the first two days, you will only have to put one drop every four hours for the next 5 days.
If for some reason you cannot use eye drops, you will be prescribed with eye ointment – fusidic acid. This need not be used as frequently as the eye drops as the medicine is more concentrated. People who are prescribed with this medicine include children, the elderly and pregnant women. The application requirement is only 2 times a day for 7 days.
While prescribed medication is good, pray that you only have to use conjunctivitis treatment over the counter eye drops. Antibiotics usually have side effects so if it is not necessary, the doctor will rely on the good old home remedies.