What is the Difference Between Keratitis and Conjunctivitis

The key difference between keratitis and conjunctivitis is that keratitis is the inflammation of the cornea, while conjunctivitis is the inflammation of the conjunctiva.

The human eye is a complex structure that has many important parts for vision. All these parts of the eye play important roles, and they all can become inflamed. The common symptoms of eye inflammation include eye redness, pain, photophobia, and blurred vision. The main areas that are more likely to become inflamed are the conjunctiva, cornea, optic nerve, sclera, and uvea. Keratitis and conjunctivitis are two different types of eye inflammations.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Keratitis 
3. What is Conjunctivitis
4. Similarities – Keratitis and Conjunctivitis
5. Keratitis vs Conjunctivitis in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Keratitis vs Conjunctivitis

What is Keratitis?

Keratitis refers to the inflammation of the cornea, which is the clear dome-shaped tissue that covers the iris and the pupil. Keratitis is a condition that may or may not be associated with an infection. Infectious keratitis may be caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. Non-infectious keratitis can be caused by a minor injury, by wearing the contact lenses for too long, or by a foreign body in the eye.

The signs and symptoms of keratitis include eye redness, eye pain, excess tears or other discharge from the eye, difficulty opening the eyelid because of pain or irritation, blurred vision, decreased vision, sensitivity to light, and a feeling that something is in the eye. The factors that may increase the risk of keratitis include contact lenses, reduced immunity, corticosteroids, and eye injury. The complications involved in keratitis are chronic corneal inflammation and scarring, chronic viral infections of the cornea, open sores on the cornea, temporary or permanent reduction in the vision, and blindness.

Moreover, diagnosis of keratitis involves eye exams, penlight exams, slit lamp exams, and laboratory analysis. Furthermore, infectious keratitis is treated through antibacterial eyedrops, oral antibiotics, antifungal eyedrops, oral antifungal medication, antiviral eyedrops, oral antiviral medication, and cornea transplant. On the other hand, non-infectious keratitis is treated through a corneal scratch and artificial tear drops.

What is Conjunctivitis?

Conjunctivitis is the inflammation of the conjunctiva. It is also known as pink eye. It is the inflammation of the transparent membrane that lines the eyelid and covers the white part of the eyeball. The most common symptoms of this condition include redness, itchiness, gritty feeling in one or both eyes, and a discharge that forms a crust during the night, which may prevent the eyes from opening in the morning and tearing. The causes of conjunctivitis include viruses, bacteria, allergies, a chemical splash in the eye, a foreign object in the eye, and a blocked tear duct (in newborns).

Conjunctivitis can be diagnosed through questionnaires, health history, physical examination, and laboratory analysis (culture). Furthermore, treatments for conjunctivitis include using artificial tears, cleaning the eyelids with a wet cloth, and applying compresses (cold or warm) several times daily, preventing wearing contact lenses, disinfecting hard lenses, antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal medications.

What are the Similarities Between Keratitis and Conjunctivitis?

• Keratitis and conjunctivitis are two different types of eye inflammations.
• Keratoconjunctivitis is a condition characterized by both keratitis and conjunctivitis.
• Both conditions can be caused due to infectious agents and non-infectious causes.
• They can be treated through antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal medications.

What is the Difference Between Keratitis and Conjunctivitis?

Keratitis is the condition of inflammation of the cornea, while conjunctivitis is the condition of inflammation of the conjunctiva. This is the key difference between keratitis and conjunctivitis. Furthermore, keratitis is caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites, by a minor injury, by wearing the contact lenses too long, or by a foreign body in the eye. On the other hand, conjunctivitis is caused by viruses, bacteria, allergies, a chemical splash in the eye, a foreign object in the eye, and a blocked tear duct (in newborns).

The following table summarizes the difference between keratitis and conjunctivitis.

Summary – Keratitis vs Conjunctivitis

Keratitis and conjunctivitis are two different types of eye inflammations. Keratitis is the inflammation of the cornea, while conjunctivitis is the inflammation of the conjunctiva. This is the key difference between keratitis and conjunctivitis.

Reference:

1. Cherney, Kristeen. “Keratitis: Types, Pictures, and Treatment.” Healthline, Healthline Media.
2. “Pink Eye (Conjunctivitis).” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Suppurative keratitis caused by B-Streptococci.” By Community Eye Health (CC0) via Flickr
2. “Viral conjunctivitis” By Microrao – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia