Can you get Herpes in your eye? Symptoms, causes and treatment

Yes. A Herpes simplex eye infection, also called eye Herpes or ocular Herpes, is a viral infection of the eye. Most are caused by the same Herpes simplex virus that causes cold sores, known as HSV-1.

Once you have the virus, it stays in your body. It usually causes no symptoms, but it can become active again and travel along the nerves to the eye. Up to 90% of people in the UK carry HSV-1, usually caught in childhood. A 2014 American Academy of Ophthalmology guideline says there are an estimated 1 million new cases of eye Herpes worldwide each year.

It’s important to get treatment, because eye Herpes can sometimes affect your sight.

Eye Herpes usually affects only one eye. Symptoms can include:

• eye pain
• a red eye
• a watering eye
• sensitivity to light
• blurred vision or other changes to your sight
• a swollen eyelid
• blisters or a rash on your eyelid or the skin around your eye

It’s more likely to be eye Herpes if you’ve had it before, or if you get cold sores.

Get urgent medical care if:

• you have eye pain
• you have a red eye that’s getting worse
• you notice any changes to your sight, such as blurred vision
• you have a swollen, irritated eyelid that isn’t getting better

In an emergency, call 999, for example if you have a red eye and it hurts to look at light, your eye is very dark red, or one pupil is bigger than the other.

Eye Herpes can look like conjunctivitis, and Herpes can itself cause conjunctivitis, especially the first time you get it.

Conjunctivitis usually affects both eyes, making them red, gritty, itchy or watery, and sometimes sticky with pus. Eye Herpes usually affects one eye. Pain, sensitivity to light and changes to your sight aren’t typical of simple conjunctivitis, so get these checked urgently.

Some STIs can cause conjunctivitis too, including Chlamydia and Gonorrhoea. Read more in “Which STIs cause conjunctivitis?” and “Can you get Chlamydia in your eyes?”

Most eye Herpes happens when the cold sore virus you already carry becomes active again, rather than from a new infection. The NHS says this might be triggered by an illness, stress, exposure to bright light or an eye injury, and it’s more likely if you have a weakened immune system.

You can pass the virus from a cold sore to your eye by touching one and then the other, especially during a first infection. UK guidelines say this isn’t usually a worry once the first infection is over, unless your skin is damaged, for example by eczema.

Genital Herpes can be caused by HSV-1 or HSV-2. HSV-2 is usually passed on through sex, and it can also affect the eye, although this is less common. Newborn babies can catch Herpes during birth, mainly if the mother gets genital Herpes for the first time late in pregnancy. Sometimes it only affects the baby’s eyes, mouth or skin, but it always needs urgent medical care.

Eye Herpes is treated with antiviral medicine, such as aciclovir, as an eye ointment, eye drops or sometimes tablets. You may also be given steroid eye drops to reduce swelling.

While you have it:

• don’t wear contact lenses until 24 hours after all your symptoms have gone
• try not to touch your eye, and wash your hands regularly

Most infections get better with treatment in a couple of weeks and don’t permanently affect your sight.

Yes. It’s common for eye Herpes to come back, because the virus stays in your body. In a large US study, about a third of people who weren’t taking preventive medicine had it come back within a year.

If you keep getting it, a doctor might recommend daily antiviral tablets to help prevent it. If treatment doesn’t work, or the infection keeps coming back, the cornea, the clear front part of the eye, can become scarred and affect your sight. Some people need a cornea transplant.

An eye infection needs checking by a doctor, who can examine your eye. Better2Know doesn’t test the eye itself.

If you have sores or blisters elsewhere, or you want to know whether you carry the Herpes virus, Better2Know offers:

• Herpes Simplex Type 1 and 2 (Swab): tests a swab from a sore on or around your mouth or genitals for Herpes 1 and Herpes 2, with results in 5 days. You can book it at one of our clinics or order it as a home test kit.
• Blemish Screen: if you have a sore, blister or lump on or around your genitals, it tests a swab for Herpes 1, Herpes 2, HPV and Syphilis, with results in 5 days.
• Herpes Simplex Type 1 and 2 (IgG): a blood test that can show whether you have Herpes when you don’t have any symptoms, from 28 days after possible exposure, with results in 2 days. It’s also available as a home test kit.

Not sure which test you need? Our Patient Care Team is available 24/7 on 020 7099 0955.

Is eye Herpes contagious?

You’re unlikely to pass the virus on to someone else from an eye infection. But try not to touch your eye, and wash your hands regularly.

Is eye Herpes an STI?

Not usually. Most eye Herpes is caused by the cold sore virus becoming active again, and most people catch that virus in childhood. But the same viruses cause genital Herpes, which is passed on through sex.

Can I pass on a cold sore to my eye?

It’s possible, especially during a first infection or if your skin is damaged. Try not to touch a cold sore, and wash your hands if you do. Read more in “How long after a cold sore can you give oral sex?”

Eye Herpes is usually caused by the cold sore virus becoming active again, and it’s very treatable when it’s caught early. If you have eye pain, a red eye that’s getting worse or any change to your sight, get urgent medical care. For sores elsewhere, or to find out whether you carry the virus, a test can help.

Book a Herpes swab test at a clinic near you or order a home test kit. Our Patient Care Team is available 24/7 on 020 7099 0955.

Not in the UK? Choose your country from the selector at the top of the page for local tests and prices.

This article originally appeared on 28 July 2023 and was last updated on 1 October 2026.

This article is general information and not a substitute for personal medical advice.

Sources

1. NHS, Herpes simplex eye infections, reviewed 10 September 2026. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/herpes-simplex-eye-infections/
2. College of Optometrists, Herpes simplex keratitis, clinical management guideline, 14 August 2025. https://www.college-optometrists.org/clinical-guidance/clinical-management-guidelines/herpessimplexkeratitis_hsk
3. American Academy of Ophthalmology, Herpes simplex virus keratitis: a treatment guideline, 2014. https://www.aao.org/education/clinical-statement/herpes-simplex-virus-keratitis-treatment-guideline
4. NHS, Conjunctivitis, reviewed 23 April 2024. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/conjunctivitis/
5. NHS, Chlamydia, reviewed 24 October 2024. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/chlamydia/
6. NHS, Gonorrhoea, reviewed 16 December 2024. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/gonorrhoea/
7. NHS, Genital herpes, reviewed 27 June 2023. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/genital-herpes/
8. NHS, Cold sores, reviewed 19 February 2024. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/cold-sores/
9. NHS, Neonatal herpes (herpes in a baby), reviewed 24 July 2025. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/neonatal-herpes/
10. British Association for Sexual Health and HIV, UK national guideline for the management of anogenital herpes, 2024. https://www.bashh.org/_userfiles/pages/files/pateletal2024britishassociationofsexualhealthandhivuknationalguidelineforthemanagementofanogenital.pdf