Data Modeling
Mathematical and Computational Data Modeling
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Volume 1 Number 1 2020
REVIEWS (Open Access)
Controlling Outbreaks of Acute Contagious Conjunctivitis Infection: A Diagnostic Review and Proposal for Mobile-Based Screening
Kamruzzaman Mithu 1*
Data Modeling 1 (1) 1-14 https://doi.org/10.25163/data.1110859
Submitted: 09 September 2026 Revised: 01 November 2020 Accepted: 09 November 2020 Published: 11 November 2020
Abstract
Conjunctivitis is, in some ways, an unassuming diagnosis — red eyes, some discharge, a bit of grittiness — yet it turns out to be one of the more frequently encountered conditions across both primary care and ophthalmology settings worldwide, carrying a financial burden that is anything but small. This review set out, somewhat modestly, to pull together the existing evidence on how conjunctivitis is recognized, classified, and managed, with a particular eye toward the persistent difficulty of telling viral, bacterial, and allergic subtypes apart at the bedside. A structured literature search was conducted across three major databases using a focused set of keywords, restricted to publications from 2013 through early 2020, from which ten studies were ultimately retained for synthesis. What emerged was a fairly consistent picture of diagnostic uncertainty: clinical heuristics long treated as reliable — discharge type, reaction pattern, symptom timing — proved considerably less trustworthy than textbooks tend to suggest, and this ambiguity appears to feed directly into patterns of antibiotic overprescribing, particularly outside specialist care. At the same time, a smaller subset of findings pointed toward conjunctivitis occasionally serving as a visible marker of broader systemic disease, underscoring the value of a careful history even in seemingly routine cases. Building on these findings, this review also outlines a proposed smartphone-based screening tool intended to make earlier, more accessible triage possible, especially for populations with limited access to eye care. Taken together, the evidence suggests that improving diagnostic confidence — whether through better clinical training or emerging screening technology — may be one of the more practical levers available for reducing unnecessary treatment and limiting the spread of conjunctivitis outbreaks at a community level.
Keywords: conjunctivitis; pink eye; red eye; controlling outbreaks of conjunctivitis; spread control of pink eye; solutions for controlling conjunctivitis.
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