My baby has a red eye, and I’m not sure what to do?

The baby above is not the one referred to in the article. Photo by Raul

Mom’s Question:

For the past one week, the corner of the left eye is red in color for my 8-month-old baby. We went to the pediatrician and he suggested Ciplox to be applied for 5 days – 5 drops a day. We have applied it for two days. It’s slightly reduced, but not much. What could this be?

Should we consult a Opthalmologist or should we wait for five complete days to see whether it goes off? Any suggestions would be greatly helpful.

Thanks in advance,
First time mom

Baby Helpline:

Advice When Baby Has A Red Eye

Your baby should be fine, just keep applying her medicine. Her tear duct in her left eye probably got a little infected. It can be caused by a cold or any kind of debris that gets into the eye.

Be sure to try to keep her hands clean whenever you can and, if possible, watch that she does not touch her eyes, so that she does not spread the bacteria into the one that is not affected.

If you finish the medication and her eye is no better or gets red again then take her right back to the doctor. Hope she feels better soon. You can find some more discussion on babies with eye problems here:

• Baby Crying Without Tears – Normal?
• Yellow Mucus In Baby’s Eye
• 2 Month Baby With Pink Eye

Paula
(Answer approved by our Medical Reference Team)

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