why has one eyeball of my child suddenly turn redish and the eyelids glued together by a yellowish secreation?
Question:
Answers:
lay mans term: pink eye
medical term: CONJUNCTIVITIS
conjunctivitis is an inflammation of the conjunctiva, the clear membrane that covers the white part of the eye and lines the inner surface of the eyelids. It is a fairly common condition and usually causes no danger to the eye or your child's vision. The inflammation can have many causes, the most common of which are infectious, allergic, and irritant.
Infectious conjunctivitis is usually caused by either bacteria or viruses. Allergic conjunctivitis occurs more frequently among children with allergic conditions such as hay fever. It is often seen only at certain times of the year, especially when caused by allergens such as grass or ragweed pollen. Other allergy-causing substances like animal dander or dust mites can cause year-round symptoms of conjunctivitis. Although other forms of conjunctivitis often start in one eye, allergic conjunctivitis typically affects both eyes at the same time.
Irritant conjunctivitis can be caused by chemicals such as those in chlorine and soaps or air pollutants such as smoke and fumes.
One of the most common symptoms is discomfort or pain in the eye, which may feel like having sand in the eye. Many children have redness of the eye and inner eyelid as well; this redness led people to call conjunctivitis by its other common name, pinkeye. The child may also have swollen eyelids and be sensitive to bright light. Itchiness and tearing are common with allergic conjunctivitis.
Discharge from the eyes may accompany the other symptoms. In bacterial conjunctivitis, the discharge will be somewhat thick and colored white, yellow, or green. Sometimes the discharge will cause the eyelids to stick together when the child awakens in the morning. In viral or allergic conjunctivitis, the discharge may be thinner and may be clear.
All types of infectious conjunctivitis are contagious and can spread from one eye to the other by touching the eyes. A child can first become infected from direct contact with someone who has the infection or something that person has touched, such as a used tissue. The infectious organisms can also spread through coughing and sneezing. In addition, certain viruses spread in the summertime when children swim in contaminated water or share contaminated towels.
Allergic and irritant conjunctivitis are not contagious.
To prevent infectious conjunctivitis, teach your child to wash his or her hands often with warm water and soap. Children also should not share eyedrops, tissues, eye makeup, washcloths, towels, or pillowcases with other people.
If your child already has conjunctivitis, ask your child to wash his or her hands after touching the eyes. Your child also should not touch the infected eye and then touch the other eye without first washing his or her hands. Be sure to wash your own hands thoroughly after touching your child's eyes, and throw away items like gauze or cotton balls after they have been used. Wash towels and other linens that your child has used in hot water separately from the rest of the family's laundry to avoid contamination.
If you know your child is prone to allergic conjunctivitis, keep windows and doors closed on days when the pollen is heavy, and dust and vacuum frequently to limit allergy triggers in the home. Irritant conjunctivitis can only be prevented by avoiding the irritating causes.
Bacterial conjunctivitis lasts about a week. Viral conjunctivitis and the resulting inflammation can last for 2 weeks or sometimes even longer.
Medical treatment for most cases of bacterial conjunctivitis consists of prescription antibiotic drops or ointment for the eyes. (The ointment is thick and as a result may temporarily blur vision.) The medication is usually given for about 1 week. Although viral infections typically do not require antibiotics, your child's doctor might treat a suspected case of viral conjunctivitis with eyedrops or ointment to prevent an additional bacterial infection or because it might be difficult to determine whether the infection is caused by a bacterium or a virus.
Generally, this treatment is well tolerated by children, although it can be a challenge to get drops into the eyes of squirming children several times a day for a week or more! In most cases, infectious conjunctivitis will go away by itself without medical treatment, but doctors often recommend treatment because it speeds up the healing process and decreases the likelihood that the infection will spread. Although infectious conjunctivitis usually is not serious, in rare cases it can cause permanent damage or even blindness, so be sure to follow the directions of your child's doctor.
If your child's doctor thinks that your child has allergic conjunctivitis, he or she may prescribe oral antiallergy medication or eye drops.
Treatment for neonatal conjunctivitis involves antibiotic eyedrops and ointments, oral antibiotics, or intravenous antibiotics, depending on the severity of the infection and the organism responsible for it.
To make your child comfortable during a bout of conjunctivitis, you can offer cool or warm compresses and acetaminophen or ibuprofen, if necessary. Parents can clean the edges of the infected eye carefully with warm water and gauze or cotton balls. This technique can also be used to remove the crusts of dried discharge that may cause the eyelids to stick together when the child wakes up in the morning.
If you think your child has conjunctivitis, it is important to contact your child's doctor to try to determine what is causing the conjunctivitis and the best form of treatment.
Other serious eye conditions can mimic infectious conjunctivitis, so if your child complains of severe pain, changes in eyesight, or sensitivity to light, your child should be reexamined. If the conjunctivitis does not improve after 2 to 3 days of treatment, or after a week when left untreated, call your child's doctor.
If you notice increasing swelling, redness, and tenderness in the eyelid and skin around the eye, especially if your child also has a fever, it may mean the infection has spread to the tissues around the eye. This will require antibiotic treatment and close follow-up.
um...HELLO, take her to the doctor. maybe its pink eye - maybe not. either way, your child should see a doctor. what exactly are you waiting for???
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