ABSTRACT
A magnifying glass and a light may be helpful, but an ophthalmoscope examination is not needed. In uncomplicated conjunctivitis, examination may be unnecessary. Most cases are viral: in children only 10% are caused by bacteria. Schools and nurseries often prefer that children with conjunctivitis do not attend until the discharge has gone. Public Health England does not recommend exclusion, and topical antibiotics do not reduce the infective period. Chloramphenicol makes little difference to comfort or speed of recovery and should not be used unless symptoms are severe, for example, the eyelids stuck together with thick discharge. Topical antibiotic may shorten the illness by 0.3 days; up to 10% of people treated with chloramphenicol suffer adverse reactions.
