THE RED EYE: TELLING THE TRUTH ABOUT A DANGER

Red eye refers to hyperemia of the superficially visible vessels of the conjunctiva, episclera, or sclera. Hyperemia or engorgement of the conjunctival blood vessels, can be caused by disorders of these structures or of adjoining structures. A physician frequently encounters patients who complain of a red eye, often causing by simple disorder, but occasionally the cause is vision-threatening condition, which requires the immediate attention of a physician, whose specialized skills, knowledge, and examining instruments are needed in order to make correct therapeutic decisions. The author believes it is time to provide the practicing ophthalmologist, the emergency room physician, the family practitioner, the internist, resident and medical student with an easy-töread, comprehensive handbook of the red eye management. In an effort to make the book of maximal knowledgeable value as a ready reference each chapter is subdivided into the classical pathological rubric of symptoms-signs-etiology-differential diagnosis-treatment-follow-up. We have used an outline format to include all essential data for making a diagnosis and properly managing the RED EYE.