Situation and vulnerability
In endemic areas, young children are an important reservoir. Lack of water, sanitation and promiscuity favour transmission.
Signs and limits of their interpretation
After repeated infections, eyelashes can turn towards the eye and rub the cornea, causing pain and intolerance to the light. Vision can deteriorate.
Diagnosis and monitoring
An eye assessment evaluates inflammation, the position of the eyelashes and the consequences on the cornea. Symptoms of red eye do not refer to trachoma alone.
Check these benchmarks in the WHO reference →
Prevention and care
Prevention combines facial cleanliness and improved water and sanitation. Programs combine antibiotics and, for some complications, eyelid surgery.
Practical issues
Are antibiotics correcting an eyelid that has already healed?
Controlling infection and treating scars have different roles. The WHO strategy provides for trichiasis surgery when eyelashes rub; ophthalmological evaluation is required.
Preparing for an exchange with a professional
- Residence or stay in endemic area
- Pain, light and vision change
- Eye episodes and previous treatments
Bring the full minutes and dates. This information facilitates evaluation; its collection must not delay an urgent appeal.
Image generated by artificial intelligence. AI illustration; it does not depict a disease, biological agent or diagnosis.
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Related fact sheets
These sheets share ways or contexts of exhibition in our catalogue. This reconciliation does not establish a differential diagnosis.
- Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever
- Anaplasmosis
- Diphtheria
- Ehrlichiosis
- Rocky Mountain spotted fever
- Tick-borne relapsing fever
Compare Trachome with associated sheets →
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