"With this new variant of COVID, sometimes conjunctivitis is the only sign," Benner said. Symptoms of COVID pink eyeīenner said some people who have developed COVID pink eye might not notice any other symptoms. "It's hard to determine whether it originated from an allergy, or is it a bacterial infection or is it a viral infection?" said Benner. Ronald Benner, an optometrist and president of the American Optometric Association, recommended people see a doctor if they suspect an infection. If you are prone to allergies, you might consider reducing outdoor trips during spring months.ĭr.
Allergies are common during the spring as pollen counts spike. Red, itchy eyes also can be a sign of seasonal allergies. What does long COVID do to kids? What we've learned after a year of research. "It'll make you miserable for about a week with swollen eyelids, tearing and itching, but then you recover without any long term effects." "Reports indicate that this is very much like other forms of viral conjunctivitis," Schaffner said. While there's no recent data about Arcturus and conjunctivitis, eye doctors and infectious disease specialists say there appears to be cases involving children though none could cite data showing how common these infections might be. How rare is COVID pink eye?Ībout 1% to 3% of patients with COVID-19 have had pink eye as a symptom, the American Academy of Ophthalmology said, citing studies based on earlier strains. The most common forms of pink eye spread easily from person to person. It causes inflammation on the outer surface of the eyeball and eyelids. Eyes turn red and swell and can produce a sticky discharge.
What is pink eye, aka conjunctivitis?Ĭonjunctivitis, known as pink eye, is an eye condition that can be caused by a virus, bacteria or allergies. Lessons from the COVID war: US should have attacked COVID like a foreign invasion, experts sayĪre your ears ringing? Experts are studying whether its linked to COVID or the vaccine. "But the most distinctive feature is that it seems to have a tendency to produce conjunctivitis, particularly in children." "It tends to produce more fever than some of the other strains we've seen," Schaffner said. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee.īut Arcturus differs from earlier strains in at least two ways.
Existing vaccines and coronavirus treatments that work on omicron appear to work well against XBB.1.16, said Dr. Infectious disease doctors say the strain's mutation in the spike protein makes it highly transmissible but doesn't cause more severe cases. How is Arcturus different from other coronavirus strains? The World Health Organization has elevated this strain of omicron to one of two "circulating variants of interest." The variant, which has been called Arcturus, is responsible for a growing share of coronavirus cases in the United States.Īs of April 22, it caused 9.6% of COVID-19 infections nationwide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Īrcturus was first reported in January and has spread rapidly in other nations such as India and Indonesia. About 1 in 10 cases of COVID-19 nationwide is caused by an emerging coronavirus strain, XBB.1.16.
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