The baby has a watery eye

In the first years of the life of their baby, parents constantly face different new situations for themselves. Even a relatively healthy and rarely sick child happens to puzzle the still inexperienced mom and dad with health issues. Cough, runny nose, fever, chapped teeth and inflamed gums, allergies are very common phenomena in the life of a 2-3-year-old crumb. But each of them ever happens for the first time, and parents need to know in theory, at least, what the given symptom means and how to act in this or that situation.

The same can be said about the situation when the child suddenly begins to water his eyes. This may be a symptom of one of the following diseases.

Why can a child get teary eyes?

1. For example, if a child sneezes and his eyes are constantly tearing, the doctor will most likely diagnose "ARVI". In this case, lacrimation is no more than a kind of "side effect" of the common cold and does not require specific treatment. As soon as the child goes on the mend, his eye will stop watering and the condition will return to normal.
2. One of the most probable causes of a child's watery eyes is conjunctivitis, an inflammation of the mucous membrane of the eye. In addition to lacrimation, there is edematous eyelid, redness of the eye protein, photophobia. Also, purulent contents can also be released, especially after sleep. Conjunctivitis occurs because of infection in the eye, for example, when the baby rubs eyes with dirty hands, if the rules of personal hygiene are not respected or after contact with a sick person (conjunctivitis is contagious!). Conjunctivitis is a serious disease, and it needs treatment: an ophthalmologist must prescribe eye drops or ointment. Therapy depends on the origin of the disease and is different for viral, bacterial and allergic conjunctivitis.
3. Allergies can become one of the causes of lachrymation in a child. In most cases, to determine that this condition is caused by allergy, it is easy enough, noticing that the eyes of the child not only water, but also itch. Be sure to tell the doctor about this: this fact will facilitate the diagnosis and help to prescribe effective treatment. Remember that the allergy is not contagious, but the rules of hygiene do not cancel it.
4. If the baby's eye is wet, it can be caused by a congenital disease called dacryocystitis. Recently, it is increasingly found in newborn babies. Dacryocystitis is a narrowing of the lacrimal canal, in which the normal function of lacrimation is disturbed, there is obstruction of the canal and, as a consequence, its inflammation. In this case, there is always a tear in the glaze, pus is released. The disease begins most often with one eye, but very soon the pathogenic microflora falls in the second. Treatment of dacryocystitis is a massage of the lacrimal canal, which must be done 5-6 times a day. Also the child is prescribed antibacterial drugs in the form of drops for the eyes and nose (including vasoconstrictive), and if this turns out to be ineffective, the problem is solved operatively.

Memo for parents

If you notice that a child has a tear or a glazed eye, then one should not wait until it passes by itself. Your task is to cure the baby as soon as possible, even if it does not cause him any tangible inconveniences. For this you need:

• first of all, contact a doctor, tell him about the symptoms, the time of onset of the disease, the possible contacts with sick people, the presence of the child's allergies;
• Touch the baby's eyes only with cleanly washed hands in order to wipe off the tear or clean the purulent contents with sterile cotton wool;
• as an auxiliary therapy at home, you can do a rinse of the eye with tea, infusion of chamomile, a solution of furacilin.