Notes and References. 1  U.S. Senate: Reference Home > Glossary > Christmas tree bill. 2  Lardner, George (1966) The Day Congress Played Santa: A Look at the Christmas Tree Bill, Washington Post, 25 December, p. A1, A10. 3  Shribman, David (1983) It Began as a Rather Ordinary Piece of Legislation, New York Times, 9 November, p. A22.
When the individual is awake, blinking of the eyelid causes rheum to be washed away with tears via the nasolacrimal duct. The absence of this action during sleep, however, results in a small amount of dry rheum accumulating in corners of the eye, most notably in children.
The leading cause of a red, inflamed eye is viral infection. Adenoviruses are the type of virus that is most commonly responsible for the infection. Other viruses that can cause pinkeye include herpes simplex virus (HSV), varicella-zoster virus (VZV), poxvirus (molluscum contagiosum, vaccinia), picornavirus (enterovirus 70, Coxsackie A24), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).