What will stop my eye infection. Eyewash and ointment havent.

The short version: an eye infection that has not responded to eyewash and ointment needs a proper diagnosis first, because the wrong treatment will not work and can make things worse.

The evidence here is mostly about specific infections that require specific drugs, not about a general "what to try next." One study from 2011 found that besifloxacin eye drops cleared bacterial conjunctivitis in about 9 out of 10 people, but that was in a clinical trial where the infection was confirmed by lab culture [2]. The same study showed that a plain vehicle (no active drug) still cleared 6 out of 10 cases on its own, which tells you many eye infections resolve without antibiotics [2]. Another study from 2002 treated gonococcal conjunctivitis with a strong injectable antibiotic (ceftriaxone) for five days, plus frequent topical drops [1]. That is a completely different disease from common pink eye.

A 2025 study looked at oral ivermectin for Demodex blepharitis, a mite infestation of the eyelash roots that had not responded to standard treatment [3]. The 35 patients in that study had severe symptoms at the start (average OSDI score of 77 out of 100) and dropped to mild symptoms (score of 7) after two doses of ivermectin taken 30 days apart [3]. That is a big improvement, but it was a single-group study with no placebo control, so you cannot be sure the improvement was from the drug or just time.

The key point is that "eye infection" covers many different causes: bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites, or inflammation that looks like infection but is not. Eyewash and ointment are broad, weak tools. If they have not worked after a few days, you need a doctor to look at your eye with a slit lamp and possibly take a swab for culture. Without knowing the cause, no one can tell you which drug will work.

My call: see an eye doctor for a proper diagnosis before trying anything else. Confidence: high.