Jason Wiese | Culture Editor
Feb. 26, 2016, 11 a.m.

The Lindenwood University community has recently seen an increase in cases of conjunctivitis, commonly referred to as “Pink Eye.”

The university sent out a notice to students via email about the occurrence on Thursday after the campus health clinic received approximately 17 cases of afflicted students.

“We started to see an increase in incidents about two weeks ago,” said Kelly Martin from the health clinic.

According to the email, conjunctivitis is a highly contagious infection of the eye. Symptoms include redness or discomfort of the eye, itching, watering, or, sometimes, inflammation of the eyeball. Treatment involves the daily application of prescription eye drops over a 7-10 day period. After about three days, symptoms should begin to subside.

Martin suggests proper washing of the hands, avoiding direct contact with the eyes and keeping surfaces clean as ways to help students protect themselves against the spread. Students are urged to visit the Lindenwood Health Clinic on the bottom floor of the Spellmann Center if they feel they have experienced any symptoms of “Pink Eye.”