What Is Pinkeye?
3. Infections
Several infection-causing organisms can cause pinkeye. These include viruses, bacteria, and fungi. The types of pinkeye caused by these pathogens are referred to as viral, bacterial, and fungal conjunctivitis, respectively. Overall, viruses account for most cases of the condition.
Viruses implicated in pinkeye include the group that also causes the common cold, rubeola virus that also causes measles, herpes viruses that also cause cold sores, shingles and chickenpox, and Epstein-Barr virus, which also causes mononucleosis. Bacterial pinkeye may be caused by bacteria such as Streptococcus pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus, Hemophilus influenza, N. gonorrhea, and Chlamydia trachomatis. Fungal conjunctivitis is caused by fungi such as Candida albicans and Candida tropicalis, which also cause candidiasis.
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