Non-Traumatic Subconjunctival Haemorrhage

Non-traumatic subconjunctival haemorrhage occurs when conjunctival or episcleral vessels bleed into the subconjunctival space. In spontaneous (non-traumatic) haemorrhage, the cause may be a valsalva manoeuvre (e.g. coughing) or trivial trauma. Other systemic causes must be excluded and the patient’s blood pressure and coagulation status (if taking anticoagulant medication) need to be checked.

Provided no other cause is found, the patient should be reassured and informed that the haemorrhage normally takes 2-3 weeks to resolve completely.