A blood spot in the eye is similar to an ordinary bruise on the skin. It appears as a single, concentrated spot of red or many scattered red patches on the white of the eyes. It is mostly harmless and heals on its own. Blood clots in the eyes appear due to accidental injury to the eyes. If the injury was minor, you may not have any painful symptoms either. However, serious injuries will result in eye pain, and if left untreated, they can affect the sight and lead to blurry vision.
A red spot or patch on the white of the eye can be identified as a blood clot in the eye. It appears as a sudden spontaneous red patch on the surface of the eye and may also shift position. The medical term for a blood clot in the eye is subconjunctival hemorrhage. It is also known as hyposphagma; however, this is a condition in which there is bleeding underneath the conjunctiva.
A blood clot in the eye often manifests overnight. The white of the eye is covered by a thin film called conjunctiva that consists of many blood vessels and nerves. The conjunctiva is the outermost protective coating of the eyeball. The blood vessels behind eyes are very delicate, and a rupture of the blood vessels results in a red clot in the eye. When the blood vessels get ruptured due to hit or any injury, to prevent excessive blood loss, blood clots are formed. In general, you will not need to take any action to get rid of red spots in your eye. They will gradually change color and disappear.
Subconjunctival hemorrhage is also common in babies, especially in newborn infants, due to the pressure changes in the infant’s body during childbirth.
Apart from the obvious cause, which is injury to the eye, there are some other factors that may lead to a blood clot in the eye.
Some of the common blood clot in the eye reasons (apart from eye injury) are as follows:
Blood clots in the eyes could also be some severe eye infection that is not related to any spontaneous injury, shock or injury to the head, or post eye or eyelid surgery. Rarer causes may include blood clotting disorders, vitamin K deficiency or other systemic blood disorders.
Usually, no symptoms are associated with a subconjunctival hemorrhage, except a bright red patch that appears on the white part of the eye. You may also feel some of amount of discomfort such as itchiness or irritation in the eye. An eye blood clot symptom that is common is the clot itself that can usually be noticed by others. This, however, will depend on your eye color and where the blood clot is located. Other less common symptoms include:
If you experience any of these symptoms, you should consult your doctor for treatment.
Usually, subconjunctival hemorrhage does not require any treatment. So how long it takes to heal? Well, depending on the intensity of the injury, the process could take anything from three days to a few weeks. In most cases, the red spot slowly subsides on its own as the body reabsorbs the clot in the eyes. Thus, mild and minor injuries can be treated without use of any medication and with some rest. You can speak with your doctor and purchase some lubrication such as artificial tears to soothe the eyes. Ensure not to rub your eye as it can increase the risk of re-bleeding. Some simple home remedies to alleviate discomfort and hasten healing include:
Although, the occurrence of blood spot in the eye is quite common and mostly harmless, it is possible that they are an indication of some serious condition that may require immediate medical attention. Thus, you need to consult ophthalmologist as soon as you notice anything unusual with your eye or find constant redness of the eye that also causes vision change and pain. This can be a symptom of other conditions affecting the eye such as glaucoma.