This content was originally produced for audio. Certain elements such as tone, sound effects, and music, may not fully capture the intended experience in textual representation. Therefore, the following transcription has been modified for clarity. We recognize not everyone can access the audio podcast. However, for those who can, we encourage subscribing and listening to the original content for a more engaging and immersive experience.
All thoughts and opinions expressed by hosts and guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views held by the institutions with which they are affiliated.
Common Causes of a Ruptured Eye Vessel
Interviewer: It's time for another edition of "ER or Not" with emergency room physician, Dr. Jeffrey Druck, where we help you figure out if it's a reason to go to the ER, head to an urgent care, see your provider, or handle it on your own.
Today's question: You wake up, you look in the mirror, and you notice a patch of red in the white of your eye, maybe a little blood, and it looks dramatic, like a broken blood vessel. Dr. Druck, should you go to the ER or not?
Dr. Druck: Just to be very specific, we're talking about the white of your eye, so the outside, not in your iris, not in the colored portion or the black portion of your eye. And if you have a broken blood vessel there, that's really nothing that you need to have anything done for it. It looks horrible. And people will be like, "Oh, my gosh, what happened to you?" The most common reason to have those broken blood vessels is usually just an increase in pressure that occurs within your eye. So, for example, coughing can be one of the things that causes you to rupture one of those blood vessels.
Interviewer: Oh, no. Coughing, really?
Dr. Druck: Or, you know, when you're sleeping. Yeah. Even just turning over in your sleep and hitting your eye wrong against the pillow can be enough to rupture one of those blood vessels. And you're right, it looks horrible. It's really scary.
Interviewer: Sure.
When to Be Concerned About Eye Bleeding
Dr. Druck: But honestly, there's nothing that you need to have done for it. Now I would say there are a couple of caveats. One is if it does involve your iris, that's the colored portion of your eye, or your pupil, which is the black portion of your eye; if you see any blood there, that changes things dramatically. And obviously, if you have any vision changes that are occurring at the same time as that ruptured blood vessel, those would be things that you needed to get checked out.
Interviewer: Yeah. I know that's kind of scary. But if it's in the white of the eye and you're not really seeing any vision changes or anything, is it okay to go to an urgent care, or is it just something that will go away on its own?
Dr. Druck: It'll go away on its own. Obviously, you know, you can go to an urgent care if you're really concerned, to have somebody else look at it and reassure you. And to some extent, that's what we do in the Emergency Department too, we do a lot of reassurance with people. And sometimes, you know, there are problems that are just going to take time, and this is one of those. If you're more brave and are willing to make your own judgment from that perspective, it's not even something you need to go see an urgent care for.
When It's Time to Go to the Emergency Room
Interviewer: So, final diagnosis, ER or not, a broken blood vessel in the eye?
Dr. Druck: If it's in the white portion of your eye and there's no evidence of any visual changes that you have, stay home. But if it's in the colored portion of your eye or the black portion of your eye, and you have any vision changes, definitely come on in.
Is it really an emergency?
ER OR NOT?