Eye glued/puss in the eye | Sniffles in the baby

Eye glued/puss in the eye

Pusty or sticky eyes are not automatically associated with a cold or a chill. Nevertheless, bacterial or viral infections can trigger conjunctivitis. Triggered by bacteria, the eye secretes purulent secretions and is yellowish in color.

If the eye is affected by viruses that cause conjunctivitis, the eye secretes a colorless secretion. In case of viral conjunctivitis, the conjunctivitis should heal by itself within one week. In case of bacterial infections, an antibacterial ointment may be necessary. As a matter of principle, purulent eyes should be examined by an ophthalmologist.

Cold and phlegm

Mucus is produced by a hypersecretion of the nasal glands, which are located in the mucous membrane and keep the nose permanently moist. If a virus causes an excessive secretion of secretion, it can “clog” the nose. With viral infections, the secretion is watery and clear, after some time it can become cloudy.

If bacteria settle on the viral infection, a so-called superinfection occurs and the secretion turns yellow. Rarely, rhinitis/colds are caused by bacteria. The mucus should be sucked out when the airway is blocked.

Diagnosis

The diagnosis of a cold is usually purely clinical, i.e. based on the symptoms described by the child and the physical examination. If children are too young or too silent to describe their symptoms, it is particularly important to look at the child closely to identify possible causes, such as a foreign body in the nose. If the rhinitis is not caused by a simple cold, is particularly severe or long lasting, various differential diagnoses should be considered, which is why further clarification is advisable.

For this purpose, certain pathogens can be detected in laboratory chemical procedures, which can be applied to the influenza virus (pathogen of the “real” flu) or viruses that cause childhood diseases such as the measles virus. An allergy test can be particularly useful for chronic rhinitis. For this purpose, the usual skin test (so-calledPrick test) usually preferred a blood test in which specific IgE antibodies can be detected (so-called radio allergo-sorbens test).