A subconjunctivial hemorrhage occurs when one of the blood vessels on the white part of the eye bleeds. The "skin" over the white part of the eye is composed of a tissue paper thin membrane. When a blood vessel breaks or leaks, blood can accumulate behind this lining and produce a very red area on the eye. This very common condition is harmless and will not hurt the eye or the vision.

Most of the time this hemorrhage occurs for no apparent reason. However, any type of trauma to the eye (even minor things like rubbing the eye) can cause this. Any kind of straining, such as heavy lifting, coughing, sneezing, or straining during a bowel movement can cause a hemorrhage to develop. Frequently, a person will notice this in the morning after awakening.

If there is no history of injury to the eye and no sign of infection, no treatment is necessary. Sometimes, due to gravity, the hemorrhage may appear to spread to the lower portion of the eye. As it heals, the area of hemorrhage acts like a bruise (it fades and may turn yellow) and will take about 2-3 weeks to clear by itself. This condition is harmless - it looks worse than it is. "Get the red out" eye drops will not make the hemorrhage go away faster.