Is a red spot on my eye normal after an injection?

What's normal

A small blood vessel on the surface of the eye gets nicked by the needle, and the blood spreads out under the clear skin of the eye. The result is a solid red patch on the white of the eye, sometimes bright red and sharply edged. The ASRS says there may be a small bleed or subconjunctival hemorrhage on the surface of the eye where the needle enters, and that this usually heals within a week. The AAO describes the same thing and also says it usually clears up within a week.

It looks far worse than it is. The blood is on the outside surface, not inside the eye, so it does not blur or block vision and it does not hurt beyond the general surface irritation. It often looks bigger on day 2 or 3 than it did at first because the blood spreads before it is reabsorbed, and it fades through orange and yellow before disappearing, the same way a bruise does. Aspirin and blood thinners can make it bigger and more frequent, which is not a reason to stop them on your own.

Usually most obvious on days 1 to 3, fading through orange and yellow, generally gone within about a week.

When it stops being normal

The red spot itself is not the warning sign. What matters is what comes with it. If the redness is spreading and getting angrier over days instead of fading, and it comes with increasing pain, worsening vision or new light sensitivity, that is the pattern the AAO tells ophthalmologists to have patients report promptly, because it can mean infection inside the eye. Call the retina office the same day.

Also call if the red patch is still there and unchanged well beyond a week, or if it keeps getting bigger after the first few days. A red spot that quietly fades on schedule needs nothing.