APOLLO, The Introduction
There were myths about ‘anya-mkpeke’. Anya-mkpeke was the local nickname for red eyes. In school, we knew it as ‘Apollo‘. Growing up, I dreaded it. It was difficult avoiding it, and even more harrowing experiencing it. What with waking up in the morning and finding that you couldn’t open your eyes because your eyelids were sticking together? Scary for a child. Isn’t?
When you managed to remove the crusted eye secretions that sealed your eyes when you slept, you noticed that the bright lights of the early morning sun were not as pleasant or friendly as previously. For the first time, you hated the early morning sunlight! I don’t mean that type of hatred that is related to your not wanting to get off bed because it is a holiday. The bright light this time simply hurt the eyes.
You also had this gritty feel in your eyes like there were grains of sand in them. Oh boy. This doesn’t feel like the same set of eyes you used the previous day! The discomfort lasted a couple of days but the torments on the mind longer, especially if you were the first to experience the red eyes. Everybody else reminded you that you brought the disease home as if you deliberately did.
It was almost like a ‘festival of red eyes’ whenever its season came. Yes, we observed that it often happened at the inter-phase between the rainy and dry seasons, about the harmattan season. I say festival because anybody could be a victim in the season. You noticed adults putting on dark goggles to shade their eyes from sunlight. You could easily mistake that for a heightened sense of fashion until you see the eyes behind the shades.
All sorts of new rules got introduced to reduce the spread of the disease, as in the days of Covid-19. One of the most difficult of the rules was that you shouldn’t even look at who has red eyes. And how do you comply when many people were putting on funny-looking eyeshades?
And if you survived a season (like in the case of Malaria), there was no guarantee you would escape the infection another season. Oh. I hate Apollo.
SYMPTOMS & CAUSES
Conjunctivitis, also known as “pink eye,” is a common eye condition. It’s an inflammation of the conjunctiva, the membrane that covers the white of the eye and the inside of the eyelids. Within this membrane, there are tiny blood vessels that get enlarged when the conjunctiva becomes irritated. The enlarged blood vessels make the eye look red; the reason why it is also called “red eyes”.
Most cases of pink eye are typically caused by adenovirus but can also be caused by herpes simplex virus, varicella-zoster virus, and various other viruses, including the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Acute Epidemic viral haemorrhagic conjunctivitis, aka Apollo, is an adenovirus disease that presents with red swollen eyes and sub-conjunctival haemorrhage. There can be bacterial super-infection if the environmental conditions permit.
Broadly speaking, the causes of conjunctivitis can be categorized into 3, namely:
*i) Infective
*ii) Allergic
*iii) Chemical
Infections may be caused by viruses or bacteria. Virus infection is by far more commoner and may occur with other symptoms of a common cold. It presents with watery discharge. Some cases of viral conjunctivitis may develop stromal or subepithelial abnormalities. In such cases, if subepithelial infiltrates are in the pupillary axis, they may lead to decreased vision.
Bacterial conjunctivitis comes with redness of the eye, mucopurulent discharge, and chemosis. The incubation period for bacterial conjunctivitis is estimated to be 1 to 7 days. If left untreated, in patients who have purulent or mucopurulent discharge (suspected chlamydial and gonococcal conjunctivitis), who wear contact lenses, and who are immuno-compromised. Conjunctivitis may cause corneal damage (such as corneal ulcer, scar, and perforation), sepsis, and meningitis. This may lead to permanent blindness and death. Most cases of bacterial conjunctivitis are bilateral, although the time of onset may vary. Most cases of bacterial conjunctivitis occur in otherwise healthy individuals.
Allergic conjunctivitis comes usually with itching of the eyes and eyelid swelling. If you have allergic conjunctivitis, you may experience intense itching, tearing and inflammation of the eyes — as well as sneezing and watery nasal discharge. Seasonal allergic conjunctivitis is the most common form of the condition, and symptoms are related to season-specific aeroallergens. Especially in the season of harmattan, Apollo is most common due to these allergic reactions to the weather. Most allergic conjunctivitis can be controlled with anti-allergy eye drops.
With the way we live our lives being modified by technology, the prolonged use of lighted electronic devices like computers and the like may produce a medical condition now generally known as Computer Vision Syndrome. Keratoconjunctivitis sicca (dry eye syndrome) comes with a foreign body sensation, mucoid discharge, ocular dryness, excessive tearing (reflex secretion), photophobia, itching, and blurry vision. These symptoms tend to be worse toward the end of the day with prolonged use of the eyes. If left untreated, it can lead to corneal ulceration, corneal perforation, and ultimately permanent blindness.
Chemical conjunctivitis can result from irritating substances like shampoos, cosmetics, contact lenses, dirt, smoke and pool chlorine.
There are other serious illnesses that show signs of reddish eyes and cannot be identified as such. Identifying Conjunctivitis is no different. Signs of such conditions include decreased vision, significantly increased sensitivity to light, inability to keep the eye open, a pupil that does not respond to light, or a severe headache with nausea. A virus (herpes simplex) or bacteria (gonorrhea or chlamydia) can cause STIs. STIs can cause pink eye in both adults and newborns. So also, a foreign object in your eye, blocked or incompletely opened tear ducts in babies, and autoimmune conditions. Diseases that cause your own immune system to overreact are a rare cause of pink eye.
COMPLICATIONS
If left untreated viral conjunctivitis will generally clear without complications. Bacterial conjunctivitis is also often self-limiting and will clear within one or two weeks from onset. However, complications of untreated conjunctivitis are as numerous as they are severe. Some of them are Chronic infections, Bacteria superinfections, Corneal edema, Cataract, and Visual loss.
PREVENTION
- Avoid touching your eyes with your hands.
- Do not share towels or washcloths.
- Avoid rubbing or excessively touching your eyes.
- Avoid sharing eye products, such as eye drops or cosmetics.
- Clean contact lenses according to your eye doctor’s instructions.
- Replace cosmetics, such as mascara, eyeliner or eye-shadow, every three to six months.
- Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly. These preventive protocols mirror those in my previous blogs on cholera, typhoid fever, herpes, head lice, scabies etc.
TREATMENT
Treatment is dependent on the appropriate diagnosis of the cause. Outcomes may be dependent on that too. It is important to see a doctor, therefore. At least, you can take advantage of Telemedicine
We encourage community protection and personalized care.
