While rare, an eye infection inside the eye (called endophthalmitis) is a serious complication that occurs in the first few days up to 2 weeks after surgery if it’s going to happen. It’s important to recognize warning signs so you can seek immediate care.

Severe or increasing pain is a red flag – mild ache or scratchiness is normal, but if you have true pain that is worsening, that’s not typical. Significant redness spreading in the white of the eye, especially if accompanied by pain and vision decrease, is concerning. Some redness is expected (your eye just had surgery), but it should gradually improve, not get redder.

Discharge from the eye that is yellow, green, or copious mucus is a bad sign. A small amount of clear tearing is normal, but pus-like discharge is not. Vision getting worse: if your vision was improving then suddenly declines significantly or gets hazy, that’s worrisome. Light sensitivity way out of proportion, along with these symptoms, is another sign.

These signs usually appear 2-10 days post-op if they occur. If you suspect infection, it’s an emergency – you need to contact your surgeon immediately, day or night. They will likely have you come in ASAP and if confirmed, treat with intraocular antibiotic injections, etc. Fortunately, this happens in far less than 1% of cases (with modern sterile technique and antibiotics). But being vigilant for these signs is important since early treatment is vision-saving.

One tip: differentiate between normal surgery irritation and infection – normal: mild ache, some redness, slightly blurry vision that improves daily. Infection: sudden worsening of pain/redness/vision after an initial day or two of betterment.

Remember the mnemonic: RSVP – Redness, Sensitivity to light, Vision loss, Pain – these together mean call right away. It’s always better to be checked and find it’s nothing major than to miss an infection.