My friend showed up to the office today with Viral Conjuctivitis (Pink Eye), according to google. It’s not that bad: the affected eye looks smaller than the other, very minor clear fluid (it looks like he’s holding back half a tear), but a lot of redness on the edges, and that’s it, no pain or itchiness or anything. He’s going to see the doctor today (even though these web sites say that nothing can be done about the viral kind), and has been freaked out all weekend about it because the redness isn’t going away. He bought two OTC medications (something with) “Pink Eye” on the box and Visine Advanced Relief, and they don’t appaer to be working. Anyone know of any good remedies for reducing the redness? He’s meeting his girlfriend’s parents for the first time this Thursday and he keeps running into my office freaking out about it. Apparently, he’s been ditching them in the past, and now that he actually has a real excuse, he doesn’t think they’ll believe it. :dubious:
So he hasn’t seen a doctor, and he’s getting diagnosed by Google?!? Neither your friend nor Google are qualified to say whether this conjunctivitis is viral or bacterial. If bacterial, it is easily treated by antibacterial eye drops. My kids have had it several times, and I’ve had it once. I do not know about the viral kind but the doc ought to be able to provide something that would relieve the symptoms.
If he’s seeing a doctor today, there’s a good chance he will at least look normal on Thursday.
Your friend could go BLIND from pink eye. Don’t dick around with it. Tell him to see a doctor.
I’m a total fraidy-cat about doctors. I go to the doctor pretty much only when I think there’s a fairly good chance that I could die or be permanently injured from whatever I’ve got.
I go to the doctor for pinkeye. He should, too.
I think I had viral pinkeye once about ten years ago, and the doctor did give me eye drops, which helped. I don’t know what was in them.
Oh, and tell him not to come in to work with pinkeye, either. It’s very contagious. And don’t go to meet his girlfriend’s parents- giving them pinkeye is really, really not a good way to make them like him. If he’s living with his girlfriend, he shouldn’t be sharing a bed or towels or washcloths with her until he gets better, either.
And tell him to throw out any eyedrops he’s used while he had pinkeye- they’re probably contaminated with viruses or bacteria from his eye.
Sigh… the words “doesn’t have the sense that God gave gravel” keep coming to mind…