Puffy eyes

Puffy eyes are a condition in which your eyes are beginning to swell. We know that the skin around our eyes is very sensitive and thin. In the most cases this condition goes on its own or in another cases we can use some simple home remedies which can help us to cure of this condition. But also puffy eyes can be symptoms of another eye conditions and in these cases you need a help from eye – care professional to resolve this problem. If you have noticed that your puffy eyes are persistent and severe or they are accompanied with additional symptoms, then you should ask for help from the optometrist who can help you to rid of this problem. There are many simple home remedies which are available for puffy eyes. You should use them if your problem is not a result of some underlying condition. But if you have some underlying condition that is the main cause for the puffy eyes, then you need to talk your doctor and get medical help.

Symptoms of puffy eyes:

There are additional symptoms which can be present when our eyes are inflamed or swollen such as

• Feeling of foreign body in eye
• Difficulty seeing, double vision, vision changes
• Itching or burning sensation
• Eye pain
• Eye discharge
• Redness on or around the eye
• Blurry vision
• Discomfort

But also there are more serious symptoms of the puffy eyes such as

• Difficulty breathing
• Chills
• General ill feeling (nausea, vomiting)
• Severe headaches
• Fever
• Facial and/or neck swelling

If you have noticed some symptoms such as redness around the eyes, chills, swelling in the face and neck areas, difficulty breathing and fever, then you need to ask for medical attention as soon as possible. These are symptoms of orbital cellulitis which is not common condition compared with the conjunctivitis. This disease has devastating effects. If you do not treat this condition, then this can lead to many serious complications such as meningitis or blood infection. You should never leave this condition unthreatened. If you cannot go to your doctor on your own, then you need to ask for help from your family and friends.

Causes for puffy eyes: This can be caused by hormone changes, allergies, stress, fluid retention and many other factors. Swollen eyes are part of the crying because the tiny glands in our eyelids are producing tears which are becoming inflamed from over activity. Also there are some cases when we get puffy eyes after sleeping. This can be caused by too much sodium in our diets which is also the biggest reason for water retention. If you drink excessive alcohol amounts or you have lack of sleep, then you can also get puffy eyes. There are many other additional causes for this condition such as

• Eye infections [1]
• Styes
• Blepharitis [2]
• Conjunctivitis [3]
• Allergies
• Contact lenses [4]
• Nephritic syndrome; puffy eyes may be the first sign of this condition [5]
• Dysfunction of tear glands
• Hypothyroidism [6]
• Diet
• Skin disorders such as dermatitis [1]
• Normal aging process

Who can get puffy eyes? Puffiness under our eyes is a common symptom of poor diet, stress, lack of sleep and allergies. When the skin around our eyes becomes itchy and irritated, then in this case we can get puffy eyes. People who drink too much alcohol or add too much sodium in their diets before they go to the bed can get puffy eyes. [7] When they wake up in the morning they may have puffy eyes because they have water retention in their bodies. When we are in stressful situations, then this factor is making our eyes, skin and other parts of our bodies to become weak. This is a reason why our eyes can easily get some health problem such as swelling. We know that the blepharitis is an inflammation of our eyelids and the base of our eyelashes. There are some cases in which puffy eyes are symptoms of the blepharitis. [2] You should try to avoid irritants such as smoke. Also you need to avoid allergens when it is possible. You should avoid rubbing your eyes. If you have noticed itching of your eyes, then you should apply a cold compress. You should drink a lot of water throughout the day because in this way you will avoid the water retention.

Above are some of the symptoms of Puffy eyes.

References:

[1] Sami MS, Soparkar CNS, Patrinely JR, Tower RN. Eyelid edema. Seminars in Plastic Surgery. 2007;21(1) 24–31.

[2] Hosseini K, Bourque LB, Hays RD. Development and evaluation of a measure of patient-reported symptoms of Blepharitis. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes. 2018.

[3] National Eye Institute. Pink eye. Retrieved from www.nei.nih.gov/learn-about-eye-health/eye-conditions-and-diseases/pink-eye

[4] Efron N. Contact lens wear is intrinsically inflammatory. Clinical and Experimental Optometry. 2017;100(1):3-19.

[5] McMahon J. Eyelid edema as presenting sign of nephrotic syndrome. American Academy of Optometry. Retrieved from www.aaopt.org/detail/knowledge-base-article/eyelid-edema-presenting-sign-nephrotic-syndrome

[6] Kuriyan AE, Phipps RP, Feldon SE. The eye and thyroid disease. Current Opinion in Ophthalmology. 2008;19(6):499–506.

[7] dos Santos VM, Sugai TAM, Correa FG, et al. Alcohol-related massive eyelid swelling: case report. Arquivos Brasileiros de Oftalmologia. 2007;70(1):169-71.