subconjunctival hemorrhage

This is literally a "broken blood vessel" on the surface of the eye. It appears as a bright red blood-colored patch of varying size on the surface of the globe of the eye (but not invading the area of the pupil¹. It is painless, and the patient is unaware of the condition unless he or she looks in a mirror.

Newborns may exhibit this condition as a result of vaginal delivery (and mothers may have it from pushing extra hard). Later in childhood, it can result a hard sneeze or coughing spell, or even from a blow or scratch to the eye. In this latter case, one would be concerned about a corneal abrasion or hyphema. And sometimes there is no discernible cause at all - it is just there one day.

The prognosis for simple subconjunctival hemorrhage is excellent - they all disappear without any treatment whatsoever in 2-3 weeks.

1. Which would be a hyphema - blood in the pupillary cavity (anterior chamber) of the eye. Hyphemas are serious and need immediate medical attention by an ophthalmologist.

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