What’s going on if my baby’s eyes are red and have eye mucus? Experts will tell you

If you find that your baby's eyes are red and there is always eye mucus, you must be careful. It may be caused by the baby's lack of certain nutrients or diseases such as conjunctivitis, so it is best to take the baby to the hospital for a detailed examination.

Suspected cause 1: conjunctival inflammation

After the baby is born, many parents are afraid that the child will catch a cold, so the room temperature at home is often high, and bacteria are easy to multiply. In addition, the newborn will unconsciously rub his eyes with his hands, which can easily lead to symptoms of conjunctivitis such as increased eye secretions and conjunctival congestion. If it is a serious bacterial infection, or a cold and fever occurs, symptoms such as increased secretions, increased tears, and congestion of the eyes will be more obvious, and may also cause redness and swelling of the eyelid skin.

How to deal with it

★Topical antibiotic eye drops and eye ointments can improve symptoms, and conjunctival irrigation can help subside inflammation.

Tips

Before applying eye drops, the child's eyes should be cleared of secretions. If the baby also has symptoms such as dry stool, yellow urine, thick and greasy tongue coating, etc., Chinese medicine that clears heat and fire, and helps digestion and relieves stagnation can be used for treatment.

★Give your baby plenty of water, and pay attention to the effects of the milk powder on the baby's digestive function.

Tips

For breastfed infants, their mother's diet has a greater impact on their health. Breastfeeding mothers should maintain a balanced nutrition and avoid eating too spicy and greasy foods.

★ Clean your baby's hands and trim the nails of adults and babies regularly to reduce the chance of bacterial infection of the eyes.

Suspected cause 2: Neonatal dacryocystitis

Neonatal dacryocystitis is caused by blockage of the tear duct and nasolacrimal duct that excrete tears. Because the embryonic residual membrane at the lower end of the nasolacrimal duct has not degenerated, it blocks the lower end of the nasolacrimal duct, and tears and bacteria accumulate in the lacrimal sac under the skin at the inner corner of the eye, causing secondary infection. About 2% to 4% of full-term newborns have this residual membrane, most of which will shrink on their own within 4 to 6 weeks.

Symptoms

The baby's tears increase day by day, the tear river formed by tears on the lower eyelid margin widens, and a small lump appears on the skin at the inner corner of the eye. After squeezing out the liquid, the lump may disappear temporarily. If secondary bacterial infection occurs, yellow-white secretions will often appear at the corners of the eyes, and yellow-white purulent secretions may overflow from the squeezed bulges.

How to deal with it

★Massage the lacrimal sac and nasolacrimal duct from the root of the nose to the tip of the nose to increase the pressure inside the duct and promote the rupture of the residual membrane. When bacterial infection occurs, anti-infection treatment is given.

★When massage and conservative treatment are ineffective, probing can be performed after anti-infection treatment.

Suspected cause three: gonococcal pyophthalmia

Gonococcal pyophthalmia is caused by gonococcal infection, with an incubation period of 2 to 4 days. It is often caused by mothers suffering from gonorrhea, and the newborn is infected when passing through the birth canal. Both eyes are affected at the same time, manifesting as acute purulent conjunctivitis. Usually the child's eyelids will be extremely red and swollen, almost unable to open, and a large amount of pus-like eye discharge will be produced continuously. If not treated properly, corneal ulcers may occur, leading to corneal perforation and even the risk of blindness.

How to deal with it

★Usually when a newborn is born, the hospital will use 1% silver nitrate solution to drop into the eyes to reduce the infection rate of the newborn. However, newborns delivered in informal hospitals have a greater chance of contracting the disease.

★Penicillin drugs are effective for this disease. To avoid cross infection, you should go to a regular hospital for systematic treatment to avoid delaying the disease.