What are the symptoms of conjunctivitis?

Question

I think my little one might have it, it's just the one eye, it's not watery or puffy but its getting very gooey.

Please don't tell me to just take him to the doctor, I will, but I don't want to waste their time if I'm being neurotic lol

Answer 1

Eyes red and itchy and as you said 'gooey'

Answer 2

Usually a very sticky, yellow discharge, and very bloodshot, itchy eyes. You can dissolve a teaspoon of salt in a pint of boiling water, keep it covered, and allow to cool, and then bathe the eye carefully with cotton wool dipped in the water. Use a seperate piece of cotton wool for each eye. However, if it is conjunctivitis, this will only help to relievethe symptoms....the only way to clear it completely is to get some antibiotic eye drops from your GP.  

Answer 3

It could be, also it could be a cold in his eye, is he sleeping under a draft..

Better off to get it checked out, katkat....

Answer 4

It could be conjunctivitis, I haven't had it but I've heard that the eye gets very sticky and so it's sometimes hard to open. You won't be wasting the doctors time so dont worry, it's better to go and feel silly about it just to make sure lol  

Answer 5

if the colour is yellow coming from your little ones eyes its more than likely they have conjunctivitis sumtimes is goes red and quite sore and itchy my little 1 had it when she was a baby but try not 2 let her/him touch the infected eye and touch the other 1 coz its spreads the infection really fast what u can do until u go 2 the doctors is boil water and let it cool down and use cotton wool and wipe ONCE over the eye and use a fresh cotton wool each time try this every 4 hours but u must boil the water so its sterile but allow 2 cool it will help xx

Answer 6

lots of good answers but take extra care you don't cross infect the other eye, always make sure you use new sterile wipes for each eye, poor baby wouldn't want to be anymore uncomfortable :)

Answer 7

Usually greeny thick discharge coming from eye - and when been to sleep may be crusty for your little one and he may not be able to open his eyes - would say tho that anything to do with the eyes I would go see doc - u wont be wasting his time :)

Answer 8

I have had that, It makes the white of your eye very pink.

A runny eye sounds like a cold in the eye,  Take him to the doc or to the chemist who will be able to tell you what it is.

Kat, do not put anything on it yourself.  I had this advice from the hospital when my husband put so called eye ointment on his eye and it went worse, he ended up in A & E.

Edit.. If you want, you can bathe it with cooled, boiled water with a little salt in it.  That is the same as natural tears and will be OK.  As I was told by the hospital Dr.  

P.S.  If any one didn't need an avatar it's you honey!!

Answer 9

This is off WebMD:  (http://www.webmd.com/content/article/7/1...

What Are the Symptoms of Conjunctivitis?

Burning, itchy eyes that discharge a heavy, sticky mucus may indicate bacterial conjunctivitis.

Copious tears, a swollen lymph node, and a light discharge of mucus from one eye are signs of viral conjunctivitis. People with viral conjunctivitis often have symptoms of an upper respiratory infection or cold.

Redness, intense itching, and tears in the eyes may indicate allergic conjunctivitis.

Inflamed red bumps are usually visible on the underside of the upper eyelid, especially while contacts are being worn in people with giant papillary conjunctivitis. The contact tends to ride up on the eye with blinking.

Most likely it's just a clogged tear duct.  This is very common, and yes it can come and go sometimes.  My daughter's pedi said that her daughter had one off and on until she was over a year old.  

My daughter had a clogged tear duct when she was 2 months old and I had no idea what was going on!  She woke up and her eye was all gooey and messy.  I thought it was infected or something horrible so we went to the emergency room late at night.  The doctors there were total idiots and swabbed it and gave me some antibiotic ointment and said go to her pedi in the morning to have it double checked.  Well we did and her pedi knew immediately that it was just a clogged tear duct!

She said to get a warm washcloth and hold lay it on her eye for a couple mins several times a day (like at every diaper change) and to gently massage the duct in a circular motion towards the nose afterwards.  It took about 4 or 5 days of this, but it went away and hasn't come back.  Her pedi said doctors don't know why some babies get recurrent clogged tear ducts, but usually it just stops coming back by around 12 months.

Hope this helps!

Answer 10

Hello

This may not help but its used by lots of people try a wet tea bag put it on the eye and it may help the eye, people with stys use this method and its very effective

Answer 11

the white of the eyes may appear to be slightly pink, could be glassy and have goopy substance that stick to the eye lashes. sometimes it could be just a clogged tear duct though.

Answer 12

Babies often get sticky eyes, often with an active infection.

The best thing for sticky eyes in neonates is breast milk.

Sounds nuts, but it's true. Your breast milk contains natural antibodies and will work wonders.

That's if your breast feeding, of course.....

Edited: Oops! Your question is in newborn and baby, I assumed you meant your baby....?

Answer 13

Conjunctivitis in infants

This needs to be taken very seriously. Specimens are taken from the sticky discharge and such children must be seen by an ophthalmologist. Treatment is given depending on the underlying cause of the conjunctivitis.

Conjunctivitis in young children

Small children may be susceptible to infective conjunctivitis and they may develop severe forms of the condition because of poor immune defences. This is particularly the case in babies and conjunctivitis in an infant aged less than one month old is a notifiable disease in the UK.

This type of conjunctivitis (ophthalmia neonatorum) may be due to an infection that has been contracted during the passage through the birth canal and may include gonococcal or chlamydial infection. Small babies may develop conjunctivitis from other types of infection but swabs should always be taken in order that appropriate treatment can be given.

Small babies often have poorly developed tear drainage passages (a condition known as nasolacrimal duct obstruction). These children are susceptible to watering eyes and they may intermittently become sticky, but this is usually not serious.

Answer 14

If it is just cold in your babies eye it will be in the eye mostly in the mornings.  But pink eye or conjunctivitis will leave the eye itchy and pink and your child will want to rub it a lot.  But as always see your doctor.