How to tell if you have pink eye or a stye and treat your symptoms effectively

rubbing eyes pain — Pink eye and styes are common eye conditions.
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The difference between pink eye and a stye is that a stye will often be accompanied by a bump on your eye.
But they both share common symptoms like itching, pain, redness, and swelling.
A stye and viral pink eye will likely go away on their own, but bacterial pink eye may require an antibiotic.
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Both pink eye and styes can cause itchy, red eyes. This can make it hard to distinguish which condition you have.

Here’s a breakdown of the causes, symptoms, and treatments for each condition to help you understand their differences better.

Understanding the difference between pink eye and a stye

Both pink eye and a stye are infections that typically cause itching, pain, redness, and swelling. But unlike with pink eye, a stye is often accompanied by a pimple-like bump on the eyelid. This bump can also occur inside of the eyelid, causing swelling and redness on the external part of the eye.

While styes are typically caused by bacteria, a pink eye can be brought on as a result of a bacteria, virus, allergens, or irritants. In addition, viral or bacterial pink eye could be contagious, but a stye typically isn’t.

Pink eye

Pink eye is also known as conjunctivitis. It causes inflammation of the membrane which lines your eyelid and the white part of the eye, leading to pain and redness in the whites of your eyes. Pink eye is a common condition, especially amongst children, and can be caused by bacteria, viruses, parasites, allergens, or irritants like dust and dirt.

Both bacterial and viral forms of pink eye are contagious. However, other causes of pink eye like allergens or irritants are not contagious.

With bacterial pink eye, you might experience some green or yellow discharge, but a viral infection may make your eye water and sensitive to light.

Symptoms of pink eye

The most common symptoms of pink eye include:

Inflammation
Itching
Redness around your eyes
Tearing
A yellow, green, or white discharge
Blurred vision
Swollen and red eyelids

Pink eye treatment

If you have pink eye, there's no cause for concern. Most cases of the infection will clear up on their own within five to seven days.

"Pink eye, viral pink eye in particular, is typically self-limiting, similar to the common cold. Symptoms typically get worse for the first three to five days but gradually resolve over one to two weeks," says Soma Mandal, MD, a board-certified internist at Summit Medical Group.

According to Mandal, there isn't any antiviral medication necessary for viral pink eye, and because it resolves on its own, home remedies are enough to treat it. "Topical antihistamines, decongestants, and warm moist compresses to the affected eye(s) are usually recommended to ease discomfort," says Mandal.

If your pink eye is caused by a bacterial infection, your doctor is most likely to prescribe antibiotic pills or eye drops.

Be careful not to touch your eye to prevent it from spreading to other people or your other eye. If you wear contact lenses or eye makeup regularly, it'll be a good idea to take a break from them until your infection clears up. If your pink eye is caused by an allergic reaction, treating the allergic reaction will help you get rid of the pink eye.

Stye

A stye is an eye infection caused by oil or bacteria blocking the oil glands or hair follicles around your eye. It is often characterized by a pimple-like bump on your upper or lower eyelid. Unlike some forms of pink eye, a stye is not contagious.

A stye could either be internal or external. An external stye can be visibly seen on your eyelid. However, an internal stye will form on the inside of the eyelid. This might cause your eyelid to become red and swollen.

People who have diabetes or weakened immune systems are more susceptible to developing styes.

Symptoms of a stye

The most common symptoms of a stye include:

Swelling
Light sensitivity
Redness
A lump on your eyelid

Stye treatment

In most cases, a stye will heal on its own and the lump will go away without any medical intervention. However, if the stye is persistent, causes an excessive amount of pain or swelling, or keeps coming back then you should see a doctor about it. A doctor will typically recommend an antibiotic ointment or antibiotic eye drops to help get rid of the infection.

Applying a warm compress to the eye will also help to soothe symptoms. "This can help to dilate a blocked gland, which can help to clear the blockage and inflammation," says Taylor Graber, MD, a resident physician, and anesthesiologist at the University of California San Diego.

If you are in pain, you can also take over the counter painkillers like acetaminophen and ibuprofen, says Graber. For significant styes that do not resolve, a physician may perform a procedure to drain the stye.

Insider's takeaway

Pink eye and a stye are both painful, uncomfortable infections that affect the eye. Knowing the difference between these two types of eye infections is important to help you determine what the best course of treatment will be.

While both of these conditions can generally be managed at home, it's important to check in with your doctor if you experience recurring pink eye or styes.