Photophobia (patient information)

Photophobia
Overview
What are the symptoms?
What are the causes?
Diagnosis
When to seek urgent medical care?
Treatment options
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Ogheneochuko Ajari, MB.BS, MS [2]

Overview

Photophobia is eye discomfort in bright light. Photophobia is a fairly common symptom. For many people, photophobia is not due to any disease. Severe photophobia may occur with eye problems and can cause severe eye pain even in relatively low light.

What are the symptoms?

• Blurred vision
• Changes in hearing
• Dizziness
• Headache
• Itching
• Nausea
• Neck stiffness
• Numbness or tingling elsewhere in the body
• Pain in the eye
• Redness
• Sore or wound in eye
• Swelling

What are the causes?

• Acute iritis or uveitis (inflammation inside eye)
• Burns to the eye
• Corneal abrasion
• Corneal ulcer
• Drugs such as amphetamines, atropine, cocaine, cyclopentolate, idoxuridine, phenylephrine, scopolamine, trifluridine, tropicamide, and vidarabine
• Excessive wearing of contact lenses, or wearing badly fitted contact lenses
• Eye disease, injury, or infection (such as chalazion, episcleritis, glaucoma)
• Eye testing when the eyes have been dilated
• Meningitis
• Migraine headache

Diagnosis

The doctor will perform a physical examination, including an eye exam. You may be asked the following questions:

• When did the light sensitivity begin?
• Does it hurt all the time or just sometimes?
• How bad is it?
• Do you need to wear dark glasses or stay in dark rooms?
• Did a doctor recently dilate your pupils?
• Have you used any eye drops?
• Do you use contact lenses?
• Have you used soaps, lotions, cosmetics, or other chemicals around your eyes?
• Have you been around dust, wind, sun, pollen, or chemicals?
• Does anything make the sensitivity better or worse?
• Have you been injured?
• What medicines do you take?
• What other symptoms do you have?

The following tests may be done:

• Corneal scraping
• Lumbar puncture
• Pupil dilation
• Slit-lamp examination

When to seek urgent medical care?

If eye pain is severe, see your health care provider to determine the cause of light sensitivity. Proper treatment may cure the problem. Seek urgent medical attention if your pain is moderate to severe, even in low-light conditions.

Call your doctor if light sensitivity is severe or painful -- for example, if you need to wear sunglasses indoors.

Also call if the sensitivity occurs with headaches, red eye or blurred vision or does not go away in a day or two.

Treatment options

Home care

You can reduce the discomfort of light sensitivity by:

• Avoiding sunlight
• Closing your eyes
• Wearing dark glasses
• Darkening the room

Sources

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003041.htm