Baby still has sticky eye 4 weeks in

[ThatDamnDog]

I'm sure it's just a blocked tear duct because her eye also waters, and as it hasn't spread to the other eye it's unlikely to be an infection. HV seemed to agree (so no swabs taken).

But it's still going on at 4 weeks. DS had the same and it was gone in a couple of days with a few squirts of breast milk. I've been putting BM in DD's eye too but not particularly regularly if I'm honest.

Does this sound within normal limits or should I see the GP? Bearing in mind the GP will probably pat me on the head and send me away with some patronising reassuring mumble ringing in my ears

How sticky is it and what colour?

Dd is certainly still getting white / creamy stuff in her eyes, she is erm got to count 3 weeks and 3 days.

Why not try the BM more consistently for a few days and if no better by the end of the week then call GP for advice?

It's greenish-yellow when she's been sleeping but just watery tears when she's awake. The actual eye seems fine. It's particularly unattractive though!

My ds was given eye drops at about 4 weeks for the same problem. The gp did not fob me off and send me home sharpish - she could see there was something wrong with him.

(see profile pic for a gorgeous pair of baby eyes - sorry, couldn't resist )

My DS had blocked tear ducts for over a year, eyes constanting oozing gunk that attracted all the dirt in the environment (it was so revolting that people looking into the pram to coo over the baby used to recoil in horror). He had eye drops almost constantly, and we always had sterile water in the fridge to clean his eyes.

When he was 12 months, he woke up, and for the first time in his life one of the eyes was not gungy. At 14 months his other eye cleared, just as suddenly. Which was just as well because he was waiting for an appointment to consider an operation to unblock his tear ducts.

Sounds like a blocked duct- have you tried gently massaging from the corned of eye down towards the nose? Our (surprisingly helpful) HV suggested this for DS, who had a sticky eye for over 10 weeks (having already tried antibiotic (chloramphenicol?) drops/cream prescribed by docs), and it really seemed to help. We tried to massage it 3-5 times a day, and within a week his eye stopped watering etc. Apparently sometimes if the block doesn't clear a simple operation can be performed, and is recommended as I know a child of 4 who still had blocked ducts causing endless eye infections and eventually had the op which the surgeon was most surprised had been left for so long.

Cool, thanks. Think I'll book her in :)

Lush peepers BTW namey :)

My DS (now 18 months) had trouble with this for the whole of his first year. Over the first 6 months we had all sorts of drops and creams prescribed (and much squirting of bm!) but as soon as the course was over the gunky eyes would be back again. Eventually I gave up with drops etc and went with it. A couple of times a day I would massage the tear duct (huge gloopy spurts of gunk would come out), then clean away with cooled boiled water. This kept his eyes fairly clear. Around when he reached 1 it just stopped. If it hadn't cleared up soon after 1 then an operation might have been considered apparently but we never got to that stage so I don't know much about the op.

Basically some babies have very narrow tear ducts which get easily blocked. It usually clears up by 1yr as it did for my DS. But see your Dr and who knows maybe a quick course of drops will clear it up.

My DS still has this and he is nearly 9 months. Tried the drops and massaging and we are now awaiting a referral to an opthalmologist for blocked duct op. Heartened to see that it has cleared up with others by 1 so might out the op off til after then.