What Is Ocular Herpes?
Treatment for eye herpes depends on where the infection is located in the eye – in the corneal epithelium, corneal stroma, or iris, etc.
Some ocular herpes treatments could aggravate the outbreak and therefore should be considered on a case-by-case basis.
If the corneal infection is only superficial, it can normally be alleviated by using antiviral eye drops or ointments, or oral antiviral pills over a two to three week period. In some patients, both drops/ointments and pills are used. Steroid drops can help decrease inflammation and prevent corneal scarring when the infection appears deeper in the corneal layers. Steroid drops are almost always used in conjunction with and simultaneously with antiviral drops. For those relatively few eyes where, despite the best of treatment, the virus has caused vision-impairing scars, corneal transplantation surgery is often a highly successful solution.
Although eye herpes has no cure, treatment can help control outbreaks. Studies are underway to determine better methods for managing the disease.