Photophobia: signs, diagnosis, treatment

Waking up from the bright sun, which shines directly in the eyes, gives someone great pleasure, but someone does not. It all depends on how a person perceives this world. When he leaves the dark room and bright beams hit him, he begins to frown. This is a completely normal reaction of the body. But if a person begins an unpleasant sensation, then such a symptom needs to be paid attention to. Perhaps he develops photophobia.

An unpleasant and painful feeling when light enters the eyes is called photophobia. It is accompanied by spasm of the eyelids, pain in the eyes, lacrimation. It occurs as a result of eye disease or after visiting an optometrist. During the examination, the doctor instills a special solution in the eyes that dilates the pupils. After that, a person cannot look at the bright light. But these symptoms pass quickly.

Also photophobia may be caused by glaucoma and increased intraocular pressure.

There are other causes of this disease. For example, if an individual was infected with an infection, such as measles, rubella, meningitis, rabies. Then, along with such a symptom, the temperature may rise and fever begins.

Still photophobia can be caused by a foreign body entering the eye. In fact, the fear of light directly indicates the signs of an illness. When the nervous system is affected, the symptoms may be as follows: headache, blurred outlines of objects, dilated pupils.

If the retina is irritated by light in the eyes, discomfort occurs. If a person is completely healthy, then the muscle that is constricting the pupil works without interruption. It is the narrowing of the pupil that enables our body to protect itself from getting too bright light into an organ that is directly related to brain activity. If the eyes receive sudden irritation, then the brain immediately begins to respond to this stimulus. From here various unpleasant symptoms arise.

By and large, there can be many causes of photobophobia. There are two types of this disease.

• Congenital Photophobia occurs when the body lacks such an important substance as melanin. The eyes look red due to the fact that the iris is transparent and blood vessels look through it. Hair and skin also lack a characteristic coloration.
• Acquired photophobia can occur as a result of various diseases.

If we talk about children, the first cause of this disease can be congenital. As mentioned above, this is due to a lack of melanin in the body. But most often, a child's phobia occurs in a child against a background of various diseases (detachment of the eye retina, sunburn or thermal burn, surgical intervention).

There are still congenital childhood pathologies. Partial or complete absence of the iris - aniridia. By the way, it can also occur as a result of injury. Associated changes are attributed to this disease: underdeveloped retina, clouding of the cornea, nystagmus, decreased visual acuity.

The same symptoms can occur in an adult if he suffers from any disease. An exception to this may be wearing contact lenses if they are selected incorrectly.

However, it should be remembered that photosensitivity is a common anomaly. The appearance of bright light after a long stay in the dark will certainly occur, even if a person is completely healthy. After the sudden appearance of light, the pupil does not have time to focus, so this effect occurs.

In a healthy person, after awakening, photophobia may occur briefly. With prolonged reading or as a result of working on a computer, deviations are also possible. Such manifestations should not be taken seriously if they occur infrequently, but if these symptoms recur repeatedly, then you should consult a doctor.

Perhaps a person develops damage to the nervous system. This can occur with head injuries or with various brain tumors. This condition is called "meningeal syndrome." It is characterized by nausea, headache and, of course, photophobia.

When injuring the brain, such a pathology can be diagnosed very quickly, because there is a reason, and it is known. Other diseases, such as an abscess, a tumor, a parasitic cyst, are quite difficult to diagnose. Here you need to look at the accompanying symptoms, for example, when a headache is accompanied by vomiting, which brings short-term relief. The intensity of just such a state directly depends on the position of the head. It can be horizontal or vertical.

It must be remembered that photophobia in the presence of serious diseases (brain tumors, cysts) is only one of the components of additional factors leading to increased headache. And if photophobia is accompanied by other symptoms - dizziness, paresis, seizures, impaired sensitivity - you need to understand that in front of us is a person with a serious illness. therefore for any manifestations of this kind, it is necessary to undergo an appropriate examination. And if any diagnosis is confirmed, it is necessary to begin treatment.

It must be started without delay, otherwise your ailment will take the form of chronicity, and then with an aggravation of the condition will lead to complete loss of vision. Besides, as a result of the launch, a person may develop heliophobia. It represents a panic fear of daylight.

Patients with heliophobia experience severe stress before going outside, where the sun shines. They are afraid of characteristic pain and pain in the eyes. These symptoms are caused by sunlight. This disease is also accompanied by trembling in all limbs, dry mouth, dizziness, severe headache, attacks of arrhythmia, hysteria, nausea or vomiting, panic attacks, increased heart rate and breathing.

Therefore, these symptoms should not be ignored. You must first identify the cause that provokes the phobia. If a person has these symptoms after an injury or as a result of inflammatory processes, it is necessary to eliminate the cause. Then everything will fall into place.

In order for the patient with photophobia not to experience unnecessary suffering, he can recommend the following.

• At this stage, there are photochromic lenses that are sold in specialized institutions - they will help. Just keep in mind that you need the right selection of such lenses.
• If a person is afraid of sunlight, then he needs to wear light-protective glasses. You need to buy this product in specialized stores, as they must contain glass that protects against ultraviolet radiation.
• It is necessary to carefully monitor your hygiene. Any infection can trigger a worsening of the condition of a sick person.
• Individuals with dry eye syndrome should use moisturizing drops, the quality of which should be impeccable.
• Working with a computer is another reason. Therefore, it is necessary to take breaks during this activity, to perform physical exercises and gymnastics for the eyes.