What to do if your two-year-old baby has conjunctivitis

At present, there are countless cases of children suffering from conjunctivitis and keratitis in clinical practice. Parents are very anxious and afraid that it will affect their children's eyes. The key to treating conjunctivitis in babies around two years old is to reduce the impact of conjunctivitis on the baby in the future. It is necessary to strictly follow the doctor's requirements to avoid recurrence of infection. This article introduces the specific content of conjunctivitis. If you want to know more, please read it.

1. What is conjunctivitis?

The conjunctiva is a tough membrane. The conjunctiva is tightly attached to the inner surface of the eyelid and is turned over to cover the surface of the sclera (white of the eye). The conjunctiva helps prevent foreign matter and infection from damaging the eyeball, but the conjunctiva itself can be irritated by chemicals or allergens, or infected by viruses or bacteria, causing eye pain, itching, and congestion.

Conjunctivitis is an inflammation of the conjunctiva caused by viruses, bacteria, or allergies. Allergic reactions to dust, dirt, animal fur, and pollen can cause conjunctivitis. Sand, smoke, and other types of air pollution can also irritate the conjunctiva. Colds or measles can cause conjunctivitis. Even ultraviolet rays from electric welding arcs, sunlamps, and strong sunlight reflected from snow can irritate the conjunctiva.

Some conjunctivitis may persist for months or years, especially if it is caused by ectropion, entropion, tear duct disease, chemical allergies, contact with certain irritants, or a specific bacterial infection (such as chlamydia).

2. How to treat conjunctivitis?

Treatment of conjunctivitis varies depending on the cause. The eyelids can be gently washed with clean water and a clean towel to remove secretions. If it is bacterial conjunctivitis, antibiotic eye drops or ointment can be used. Doctors will sometimes use a cotton swab to collect a little secretion and send it to the laboratory for examination, and then adjust the medication based on the test results. Corticosteroid eye drops are generally not needed for conjunctivitis. If herpes virus conjunctivitis is suspected, do not use corticosteroid eye drops as they may make the condition worse.

Antibiotics are not effective for allergic and viral conjunctivitis. If it is allergic conjunctivitis, oral antihistamines can relieve itching and irritation symptoms. If this is ineffective, corticosteroid eye drops can also be tried.

Because infectious conjunctivitis is highly contagious, patients should wash their hands before and after washing their eyes or applying medication. In addition, patients should not touch the affected eye and then touch the other eye. Towels and bath towels used to clean the affected eye should be separated from other towels.

If the cause is eyelid deformity or tear duct obstruction, surgical treatment is often required.

3. What should I pay attention to if I have conjunctivitis?

Conjunctivitis is mostly transmitted by contact, so it is recommended to wash hands and face frequently or avoid wiping eyes with hands and sleeves. The washbasins, towels, handkerchiefs, etc. used must be kept separate from those of others and should be boiled and disinfected regularly to prevent infection of others. Patients with infectious conjunctivitis should be isolated and are not allowed to swim in public swimming areas. Medical staff must also wash and disinfect their hands after contact with patients to prevent cross infection. If conjunctivitis develops in one eye, the patient must be advised to protect the healthy eye from infection. In case of severe infectious conjunctivitis, you can cover the healthy eye with a transparent eye patch, seal the surrounding area with band-aid, and pass a small rubber tube through the bottom outside to allow air circulation. This also makes it easier for the doctor to observe whether the healthy eye is diseased.