L's first Pinkeye / Conjunctivitis

After L got back from school yesterday, I noticed a yellowish discharge from his right eye. It was yellowish sticky and thick. His eye became pink as the night progressed. I called the advice nurse and she confirmed that it was pink eye / conjunctivitis and proceeded to prescribe antibiotic eyedrops which I need to pick up from the pharmacist today.

Pinkeye could be caused by irritants like fumes, smoke, dust etc. In this situation, you should wash the eye frequently throughout the day with regular eyedrops or saline solution (the ones you use to wash contact lens), both obtainable at the drugstore. Discharge is usually watery.

For bacterial infections, the discharge is usually yellow-greenish. That's when they prescribe antibiotic eyedrops. You should wash your eye with the same things above.

For viral, it is usually accompanied with cold symptoms and nothing can be done in this instance.

Usually itch accompanies pinkeye and you should try not to rub from one eye to another b/c you might transmit the germs over. Warm compress to relieve the inflammation and cool compress to relieve the discomfort.

Last night, I looked through my homeopathic book and it was a toss up btwn hepar sulp and puls. Hepar sulph is called when the patient is oversensitive and irritable. Puls when the patient is whiny and discharge is thick and yellowish / greenish. Since L wasn't irritable, I gave him puls 200c right before he fell asleep. Next morning, the discharge was gone but he had a cough so most likely it was a viral infection courtesy of his friends at school. I gave him another dose of puls 30c b/c his eye was still slighty pink and puffy.

I am really glad that homeopathy worked in pink eye situations. There was another time when J's eye was really pink but hadn't developed pus yet. I gave him Ferum Phos 200c since it was an early onset. The pinkishness went away the next day. Yay!

At least L gets to stay home on minimum flex day and coincidently, the weather sucks today.