How long does it take for eye antibotic drops to work?!

How long does it take for eye antibotic drops to work?

i went to the doctor today with a eye infection, its not pink eye cause its just really red with no pain. i was perscribed bausch & Lomb sulfacetamide sodium opthalmic solution 10%. i have been using them for almost 8 hours and i havnt seem any improvement. has anyone used these drops before or have any idea how long it will be before i will see results. i just began my vaction yesterday and i dont want to go out with a bright red eye...i been hiding behind my sunglasses!

There are a few things I would like to address. First, the drug you have been prescribed is BACTERIOSTATIC rather than BACTERIOCIDAL. That means the antibiotic does not actually KILL the bacteria causing your infection. Rather, it inhibits its reproduction and keeps the bacterial load stable in your eye. Then with time your body's own defenses can kill the bacteria. I would much rather see you on an antibiotic like Zymar or Vigamox. Or maybe something like Ciloxan. These aggressively KILL the bacteria. You will notice much more rapid improvement and also it is much less likely that we will breed resisitant forms of bacteria by not aggressively killing all the bacteria rapidly. I would say there is a very good possibility you were prescribed this drug by a general medical doctor with no training in eye care. It is probably the most commonly prescribed by this group of practitioners. Next time you have an eye infection go to an optometrist or an ophthalmologist. They are much better trained at diagnosing and treating eye infections.

Second, antibiotics should be used consistently for 8 to 10 days to assure that the infection is resolved and decrease the risk of a regrowth of bacteria should not all the bacteria be killed. This again goes back to one of the reasons you should be using a bacteriocidal rather than bacteriostatic antibiotic.

Third, if you indeed did NOT go to an eye care professional there is a good possibility that you do not have a bacterial infection but rather a VIRAL infection. General medical physicians are not equipped nor are they educated to make a differential diagnosis between the two types of infections. They tend to use an antibiotic on every red eye because they know that if it is VIRAL in nature the virus will run its course in about 1 to 2 weeks and the patient will get better no matter what they do. Studies have shown that the great majority of eye infections are actually VIRAL in nature. Antibiotics, therefore, will be of NO benefit whatsoever.

So having said all this, give it a couple of days. If you are seeing NO improvement go see an EYE doctor for diagnosis and treatment. Hope this helped.