Is this actually conjunctivitis DD excluded from nursery

[gaaaaag]

DD gets gunky eyes / eye almost every time she has a little cold. We've got a virus in the family at the moment. DD is slightly congested, but it's gone to her eye. Her eye is barely gunky. Just a tiny bit around the lashes, more like dry gunk- not sticky.

No redness either.

Like I said, it sort of accompanies a lot of her colds.

Is this actually the contagious type of conjunctivitis? It's annoying because they exclude her from nursery every time for at least 48 hours after she's been on drops to clear it up. Often it just clears up on its own anyway. No drops needed.

She's had issues with gunky eyes since she was born.

Anyone ?

There is no need for them to exclude for conjunctivitis even if it is.

It sounds like viral conjunctivitis and yes it is very contagious so I can understand the nursery's policies.

Do you think ? Do you not think it's linked to the cold? No one at home ever gets it. Including big sis and we all share a bed. To me it seems it's a creation to having nasal congestion.

But I could be mistaken of course.

Conjunctivitis isn't on the list they can exclude her for? Unless it's the nurseries specific policy

It's in their policy. I'm just wondering if this is conjunctivitis. There was a tiny bit of dried crust yesterday and none today. No redness either.

Sounds more like her tear canals are very narrow and when she gets a cold, stuff can't drain away, building up around the eyes instead. Doesn't sound like conjunctivitis at all to me.

My DD (now 16) had this exact problem
Nursery would exclude and she would need antibiotic drops which she hated (a three person job as she got toward 2yrs) but not sure it was really infectious conjunctivitis.

Eventually an older GP told me her tear duct was probably blocked and instead of very gently wiping I had to really give the cotton wool (soaked in cooled boiled water obviously) I really good wiggle and wipe firmly.

Did that a couple of times and she never had a problem again.

@gaaaaag viral conjunctivitis usually is linked to a cold or other virus which is what causes it. My son had it a few weeks ago where he had a cold and got conjunctivitis for the first time.

if you can’t say if it is or isn’t then the nursery can’t say and should play it safe and neither can we do n the internet judge. I think you need to go to the gp and get a proper professional to say one way or another and if it’s not then you might have to pay for a letter from the gp to say so.

Yea I think I need to talk to the GP about it, generally. Regardless of the nursery position.

They'll find any reason to exclude them.

My daughter has this but it's not contagious. Hers is congenital and we have been told she will likely outgrow it as she gets bigger.
She also has Ptosis in one eye so she is seen regularly by consultants in orthamology at the hospital who are have seen the sticky eyes in her case. There's no redness when she gets it.

Thanks for the advice, I'll definitely go to the GP.

DD had this when she was very young.

I took her to the GP and was told if there's no redness it is more likely to be a blocked tear duct than conjunctivitis.

DD would get a little bit of gunk in the corner of her eye every time she had a cold. Luckily I had an understanding childminder who still accepted her based on the GP diagnosis. Baby tear ducts are very tiny.

She outgrew it fairly quickly. I can't remember when but by the toddler stage it wasn't an issue any more.

The policy at DDs nursery was tif they had to wipe the eye(s) more than twice in the day they would be sent home. Once they had eye drops they could go back ....but if its viral then eye drops won't work (and I thought viral was less contagious than bacterial)

Mine is almost 2. But still seems to be an issue !

Viral conjunctivitis can be very easily spread, but the types which cause the whites of your eyes to become very red (more so than a bacterial conjunctivitis), which this doesn't sound like.

I suspect too that it's just that her tear ducts are a little blocked. I would try a little daily massage. Good instructions here

https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/family-resources-education/health-wellness-and-safety-resources/helping-hands/eye-tear-duct-massage

Go and see your GP, take a few pictures of the eyes at the moment and suggest that it's just a bit of duct blockage. You can always ask for a letter for nursery.

Does she have really long eyelashes? My eldest did and they'd get stuck in the corner or her eye and make them a bit gunky and red sometimes

Our nursery doesn't exclude for conjunctivitis and I'm glad because she's had it from
There 3 times in 4 months of going!

This has happened to my DD a few times and that's exactly how the doctor explained it. Not viral conjunctivitis. But even if it is viral, the NHS website says that there's no need to keep them off school or nursery. Our nursery allows them in with it.

Excluding them for 48 hours is a joke and pretty brutal. Eyes are completely clear now. It was barely anything before too.

Very long lashes and very full.

My kids get this all the time when they have a cold. The odd occasion it is conjunctivitis their eyes are bloodshot. Thankfully nursery and school do not exclude however I have to send them in with prescribed eye drops, I feel like our surgery think I'm taking the piss.

Going off on a tangent slightly - there's very likely a link between your nursery not excluding for conjunctivitis and your child repeatedly getting conjunctivitis. Not excluding is not necessarily a good thing.

Ds gets this often when he has a cold.. he's never been told to stay off nursery or school, and the NHS information they send out says they can attend with conjunctivitis.

As far as I'm away it's bacterial conjunctivitis that's infectious?