Conjunctivitis (Pinkeye)

What is conjunctivitis?

Conjunctivitis, or pinkeye, is an inflammation of the conjunctiva, the clear outside covering of the white part of the eye and the inside lining of the eyelids.

Although many things can cause conjunctivitis, the most common is infection.

Viral and bacterial conjunctivitis can easily spread from one person to another or from one eye to the other by contact with the eye discharge.

Viruses that commonly cause conjunctivitis include adenovirus, enterovirus and influenza virus, the same viruses that cause upper respiratory infections and colds. Herpes simplex virus causes a rare but serious form of conjunctivitis.

Bacterial conjunctivitis is commonly caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus and Haemophilus influenzae. Gonorrhea and chlamydia can cause bacterial conjunctivitis in newborns, which are sexually transmitted diseases passed to the baby through the birth canal. If untreated, serious eye damage can develop.

Other causes of conjunctivitis include allergies (for example, to pollen, animal dander or dust mites) and irritants (for example, from aerosols, chemicals or smoke). Infants also can develop conjunctivitis due to a narrow tear duct that does not let tears flow normally.

Conjunctivitis is a common illness, affecting children of all ages at any time of year. However, bacterial conjunctivitis is more common in younger children, particularly during the winter, while viral conjunctivitis is more common in older children with colds, especially during the fall.

Treatment / What you should do

If your child has conjunctivitis, you should contact a doctor.

For bacterial infections, the child should be treated with antibiotic drops or ointment. The treatment will usually last about 1 week. It is important that you give the medication exactly as prescribed by the doctor.

Any pus that you see should be wiped away with a clean damp cloth or cotton ball before the medication is put into the eye. Try not to wipe the pus across the entire eye. Pus from the edge of the eyelid can be wiped off gently with cotton swabs (Q-tips).

The infected eye should not be covered with a bandage. For blocked tear ducts, a warm compress may also help. For allergic conjunctivitis, special eye drops or medicines taken by mouth may become necessary.

If you suspect that there is a deeper infection, you should contact your doctor. Also contact your doctor if your child complains of increasing pain, unclear vision, or increased light sensitivity, if there is swelling, redness or warmth around the eye, or if your child has fever along with the eye symptoms.

Prevention

It is hard to prevent your child from developing pink eye, because it often occurs with colds.

In addition, conjunctivitis caused by bacteria is extremely contagious and easily spread when children rub their eyes. Encourage your child to not rub his eyes. Wipe off any secretions from the eye.

Frequent hand washing is also important, for your child, for you, and for any caregiver, who has cared for the child.

Children with conjunctivitis do not necessarily need to stay home from day care or school. If the doctor believes that the conjunctivitis is caused by a virus, your child may still go to day care or school.

For bacterial conjunctivitis, the chance of passing the infection is much lower once the child has been treated with antibiotic drops or ointment for 24 hours.

Your child can return to day care or school the day after the treatment starts, provided there is not a great deal of discharge from the eye.

The use of antibiotic eye ointment for all newborns shortly after birth has lowered the chance of spreading gonorrhea, which can cause blindness, to newborns. A caesarean delivery usually is recommended if the woman giving birth has active genital herpes at the time of birth.