Subconjunctival hemorrhage (broken blood vessel in eye) – Symptoms & causes

Overview

A subconjunctival hemorrhage (sub-kun-JUNK-tih-vul HEM-uh-ruj) occurs when a tiny blood vessel breaks just underneath the clear surface of your eye (conjunctiva). In many ways, it’s just like having a bruise on your skin. The conjunctiva can’t absorb blood very quickly, so the blood gets trapped. You may not even realize you have a subconjunctival hemorrhage until you look in the mirror and notice that the white part of your eye is bright red.

Broken blood vessel in the eye

A broken blood vessel in the eye may look alarming, but it’s usually harmless.

A subconjunctival hemorrhage often occurs without any obvious harm to your eye. Even a strong sneeze or cough can cause a blood vessel to break in the eye. You don’t need to treat it. A subconjunctival hemorrhage may look alarming, but it’s usually a harmless condition that disappears within two weeks or so.

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Symptoms

The most obvious sign of a subconjunctival hemorrhage is a bright red patch on the white (sclera) of your eye.

Despite its bloody appearance, a subconjunctival hemorrhage looks worse than it is and should cause no change in your vision, discharge or pain. Your only discomfort may be a scratchy feeling on the surface of the eye.

When to see a doctor

If you have recurrent subconjunctival hemorrhages or other bleeding, talk to your doctor.

Causes

The cause of a subconjunctival hemorrhage isn’t always known. The following actions may cause a small blood vessel to rupture in your eye:

• Violent coughing
• Powerful sneezing
• Straining
• Vomiting

In some cases, a subconjunctival hemorrhage may result from an eye injury, including:

• Roughly rubbing your eye
• Trauma, such as a foreign object injuring your eye

Risk factors

Risk factors for a subconjunctival hemorrhage include:

• Diabetes
• High blood pressure (hypertension)
• Certain blood-thinning medications, such as warfarin (Coumadin, Jantoven) and aspirin
• Blood-clotting disorders

Complications

Health complications from a subconjunctival hemorrhage are rare. If your condition is due to trauma, your doctor may evaluate your eye to ensure you don’t have other eye complications or injury.

Prevention

If the bleeding on the surface of your eye has a clearly identifiable cause, such as a bleeding disorder or blood-thinning medication, ask your doctor if you can take any steps to reduce the risk of a subconjunctival hemorrhage.

If you need to rub your eyes, rub them gently. Rubbing too hard can cause minor trauma to your eyes, which may lead to a subconjunctival hemorrhage.

Subconjunctival hemorrhage (broken blood vessel in eye) – Symptoms & causes

Overview

A subconjunctival hemorrhage (sub-kun-JUNK-tih-vul HEM-uh-ruj) occurs when a tiny blood vessel breaks just underneath the clear surface of your eye (conjunctiva). In many ways, it’s just like having a bruise on your skin. The conjunctiva can’t absorb blood very quickly, so the blood gets trapped. You may not even realize you have a subconjunctival hemorrhage until you look in the mirror and notice that the white part of your eye is bright red.

Broken blood vessel in the eye

A broken blood vessel in the eye may look alarming, but it’s usually harmless.

A subconjunctival hemorrhage often occurs without any obvious harm to your eye. Even a strong sneeze or cough can cause a blood vessel to break in the eye. You don’t need to treat it. A subconjunctival hemorrhage may look alarming, but it’s usually a harmless condition that disappears within two weeks or so.

Products & Services

Symptoms

The most obvious sign of a subconjunctival hemorrhage is a bright red patch on the white (sclera) of your eye.

Despite its bloody appearance, a subconjunctival hemorrhage looks worse than it is and should cause no change in your vision, discharge or pain. Your only discomfort may be a scratchy feeling on the surface of the eye.

When to see a doctor

If you have recurrent subconjunctival hemorrhages or other bleeding, talk to your doctor.

Causes

The cause of a subconjunctival hemorrhage isn’t always known. The following actions may cause a small blood vessel to rupture in your eye:

• Violent coughing
• Powerful sneezing
• Straining
• Vomiting

In some cases, a subconjunctival hemorrhage may result from an eye injury, including:

• Roughly rubbing your eye
• Trauma, such as a foreign object injuring your eye

Risk factors

Risk factors for a subconjunctival hemorrhage include:

• Diabetes
• High blood pressure (hypertension)
• Certain blood-thinning medications, such as warfarin (Coumadin, Jantoven) and aspirin
• Blood-clotting disorders

Complications

Health complications from a subconjunctival hemorrhage are rare. If your condition is due to trauma, your doctor may evaluate your eye to ensure you don’t have other eye complications or injury.

Prevention

If the bleeding on the surface of your eye has a clearly identifiable cause, such as a bleeding disorder or blood-thinning medication, ask your doctor if you can take any steps to reduce the risk of a subconjunctival hemorrhage.

If you need to rub your eyes, rub them gently. Rubbing too hard can cause minor trauma to your eyes, which may lead to a subconjunctival hemorrhage.

What to do if a vessel in the eye bursts

Likbez

Health

July 29, 2021

Urgent ophthalmological help may be needed.

What happens when a vessel bursts in the eye

Doctors call it a subconjunctival hemorrhage. It happens when a small blood vessel in the eye ruptures for some reason, preventing the blood from being absorbed quickly. As a result, a bright red spot appears on the protein.

Why a vessel in the eye can burst

Subconjunctival bleeding occurs for various reasons:

• Severe coughing or sneezing.
• Vomiting.
• Weight lifting.
• Trauma. It can happen if you rub your eyes too hard, put on or remove contact lenses unsuccessfully. Also, damage causes the ingress of a foreign body and fracture of the bones of the orbit.
• Eye surgery. After it, bleeding may begin.

The risk is increased in people with diabetes, high blood pressure, clotting disorders, and those taking blood thinners.

How to distinguish a broken blood vessel from other problems

Eyes redden for various reasons, but a burst blood vessel can be distinguished by certain signs. Usually a clear red spot appears on the squirrel, which may increase in the first two days. Sometimes the eye turns completely red. In this case, there is no pain if the vessel burst not due to injury. Also, some people feel discomfort or irritation, and redness and dilated vessels can be seen around the spot.

It happens that blood seeps through the conjunctiva or the mucous membrane of the eye. Therefore, tears may turn red or pink.

The blood will begin to dissolve after a few days. Then the spot will gradually become yellow-orange, and then disappear.

Why is a vessel burst in the eye dangerous?

As a rule, subconjunctival hemorrhage does not lead to complications. But sometimes a burst vessel can be a symptom of a serious injury. And she, in turn, can cause loss of vision.

What to do if a blood vessel in the eye bursts

Usually everything goes away on its own in 2-3 weeks. For some people, doctors prescribe artificial tears to reduce irritation.

Redness drops, anti-allergic or vasoconstrictive drugs should not be used. They will not give results, but they can cause side effects.

You will need to see a doctor to find out the cause of bleeding if:

• after a few days there are no signs that the blood is resorbed;
• blood vessels burst in the eye at once in a number of places;
• have other bleeding symptoms. For example, bleeding gums, blood in the urine or feces, a large number of bruises on the skin.

When to see a doctor urgently

You should immediately contact an ophthalmologist or call an ambulance if:

• the eye is seriously injured;
• severe pain appeared;
• vision became blurry, double vision;
• the vessel burst due to hypertension or bleeding disorders.

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What to do if a vessel in the eye bursts?

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What to do if a vessel in the eye bursts?

08/22/2022

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If the appearance of a red spot is associated with an increase in pressure, then it may disappear on its own after a while.

Why did the vessel burst in the eye?

The main factors in the rupture of blood vessels include:

• high blood pressure. If a vessel in the eye bursts, the cause may be the presence of hypertension, the pressure may increase after severe stress, meteorological changes, and also when drinking alcoholic beverages;
• severe physical overexertion. When you lift weights, your blood pressure rises, which increases the risk of ruptured blood vessels;
• injuries of the eyeballs. With bruises and blows, trauma to the vessels is possible. They can also be damaged during ophthalmic operations;
• the presence of eye diseases. Hemorrhages cause progression of glaucoma, bacterial or viral conjunctivitis;
• long-term use of medicines that thin the blood;
• incorrectly fitted lenses;
• Occurrence of eye strain. Long work in front of a laptop, reading books in poor lighting;
• the appearance of chronic diseases or age-related changes. Patients with diabetes may experience thinning of the walls of blood vessels, making them easier to rupture;
• insufficient amount of vitamins in the body.

This problem can occur not only in adults, but also in children. If you notice that the vessel burst in the eye of a newborn baby as soon as he was born, then do not worry, this is natural. Also, do not worry if you see that the baby has red eyes, the vessel has burst. In this situation, no treatment is required, the hemorrhage will pass by itself after some time.

Risk of ruptured vessel in the eye

Despite the fact that the poured blood often resolves on its own, it is still worth contacting an ophthalmologist. The true cause of the hemorrhage and its nature can only be determined by a specialist. Spilled blood in the eye can appear in the presence of a really dangerous problem with the visual apparatus. Such problems include increased arterial and intraocular pressure, rupture or detachment of the retina during a head injury, and the iris or ciliary body may also suffer. These conditions are especially dangerous because they can cause vision loss. A timely visit to a doctor will help you identify the true cause of eye damage, its severity and begin effective therapy that will save your vision. In severe cases, surgery is sometimes used. If you notice these symptoms in yourself, you should go to the doctor immediately:

• hemorrhages were accompanied by pain;
• a blood vessel visually burst somewhere else besides the eye;
• vascular ruptures are observed both in one eye and in the other.

In cases where you are using antiplatelet drugs and notice broken blood vessels in the eye, also do not delay a visit to a specialist.

A vessel in the eye burst, what should I do?

In order to solve this problem, you should not hesitate to consult a doctor. The ophthalmologist will conduct a special examination, find out the reason for the rupture of blood vessels and select the right therapy that will quickly and easily relieve you of discomfort.

Most often, the treatment of hemorrhages is not difficult and does not require special methods. Under certain circumstances, an ophthalmologist can prescribe artificial tear solutions that eliminate the manifestations of the disease and eliminate discomfort. If there was an injury to the eyeball, how to treat a burst vessel in the eye will be decided in the hospital. If viral inflammation of the eyes is present, then antiviral and anti-inflammatory eye drops are prescribed. Frequent ruptures of blood vessels, provoked by arterial hypertension, are eliminated with the help of the treatment of the underlying disease, which is prescribed by the general practitioner. The specialist must carefully interview the patient in order to correctly determine the cause of this condition and select the necessary treatment.

Never try:

• if you suspect that something has got into the eye, rub it;
• refuse to take an antiplatelet agent without the permission of the attending physician;
• self-prescribe treatment.

How to prevent rupture of blood vessels?

In order to avoid redness of the eyes, the appearance of hemorrhages, it is necessary to adhere to certain preventive measures. These include

• avoid excessive exercise during exercise in the gym, select exercises with a qualified trainer or instructor;
• consult a doctor in time if you have vision problems;
• visit an ophthalmologist frequently if you have eye diseases to monitor changes in the condition of the visual apparatus.

In addition, the power needs to be adjusted. Eat foods rich in vitamins, which are involved in improving blood circulation in the visual apparatus. Try to consume food rich in vitamins of group P and vitamin C to strengthen the walls of blood vessels, improve their elasticity, which can prevent frequent ruptures of eye vessels. These vitamins can be obtained with the use of apricots, cherries, rose hips, tomatoes, raspberries, dark chocolate.