A Kid's Advice: "Run for your eyes!"

"Run for your eyes!" my daughter cried as I sprinted back into the house from the playground last Monday. Normally that line would tickle me; my daughter's friend thought that was the actual line and introduced us to it. I wasn't laughing this time, because it was true; I had to run to save my eyes.

My seasonal allergies had been pretty much under control until last Monday when I sat outside to sunbathe under a flowering tree without sunglasses. Then I drove home with the sunroof open to enjoy some more spring weather. The last straw had been the few minutes in the backyard, and, of course, some gentle eye rubbing. It didn't help that there was pollen on my car, deck, and porch.

What's wrong with this picture? 1) I didn't protect my eyes; 2) I exposed myself to allergens while driving; 3) I didn't wash my hands before rubbing my eyes; 4) All of the above. The answer? All of the above.

What happened next? After telling the children that playtime was over, I ran in to rinse my eyes with cold water, but they still itched. So, I rubbed them some more. Within minutes, I had swollen eyelids and ridiculously red eyes; the right more horrific than the left. After antihistamine eye-drops and cold compresses were used, the itching was better. An hour later, there was a large water blister coming out of my eye. I felt like a bullfrog.

How did it end? To make a long story short, I got in touch with a doctor, took some short-acting antihistamines by mouth, and went to the ophthalmologist the next morning. I did not go to the emergency room, since there was no pain and no vision loss. By the time I made it to the ophthalmologist, the blister was already smaller. It turned out I had a severe antigen-antibody reaction to the pollen and a Staphylococcal aureus infection. There were also some evidence of ulcers. I was the worst case the ophthalmologist had seen this season. I was given more eye-drops, and by the next day I was already looking and feeling 90% better.

What can we learn from this? If you have seasonal allergies, here are some tips to minimize your suffering during the next round of blooming after all of this rain:

• Seek medical care (I know we're busy, but we have to take care of ourselves, too), especially when the condition affects your eyes.
• Minimize contact with allergens. Wear sunglasses, stay indoors, keep windows closed, don't drive with your sunroof open, and wash your hands after gardening or being outside.
• Take an antihistamine regularly, not as needed, at about the same time every day during allergy season. Use antihistamine eye drops and/or nasal steroids for additional symptom relief if you need it. These should also be used on a regular basis. Avoid decongestant use, like oxymetazoline spray (AFRIN).
• Use cold compresses for itchy eye relief. Use eye drops and nasal sprays properly to avoid wastage and side effects.
• See your general doctor if the over-the-counter medicines are not helping with your allergies. You may also be referred to a specialist like an ophthalmologist or an allergist.
• Children can suffer from allergies, too. The American Academy of Pediatrics has a good review on this topic. Talk to your pediatrician or pharmacist about age-appropriate medicines and how to give them. Using the medicines on a regular basis is also important in this age group. KidsMeds offers instructions on how to administer eye medicine to children.

Timing is Key

Having knowledge about common childhood infections does not mean that I always know when to bring my children in to the pediatrician when they have signs and symptoms of colds. In fact, there have been a few times when I knew the cause was viral and there would be nothing for the pediatrician to offer, but I made an appointment anyway. I needed to prove to myself that that was the case and nothing more, especially before the weekend. Or perhaps I wanted to be able to tell the school that she's fine and can be in school. On the other hand, there was a time when I thought it was just a cold when in fact it was a "strep" infection that was rather contagious. After that episode, I err on the cautious side, but I still don't rush her in with every sniffle or cough -- unless she has a companion rash (turned out to be a contact dermatitis).

My daughter has had a cold for 3 weeks. It started out with a sore throat, sneezes, runny nose, and cough, but has not had a fever or changes in energy level or activity interest. Gradually her coughing started to get better, and her thick, yellow mucus stopped being a messy problem. And then at 5 am yesterday, I heard loud whimpering and complaints that her left ear was hurting and "I don't like it I don't like it I don't like it!" She felt warm to the touch, but too bad my thermometer chose not to work anymore. She had also kicked her covers off of her, claiming that they were making her hot. I tried a warm water bottle for her ear, which consoled her for 3 minutes. She then complained about her face hurting (probably from leaning on the mouth of the bottle). Nevertheless, I gave her 2 chewable ibuprofen tablets (2 acetaminophen would have been fine, too) in hopes of relieving her acute ear pain and treating her discomfort from the fever. She immediately fell back to sleep (without her lullabies cd) for 4 solid hours. She woke up yelling that she didn't feel pain anymore. By then I had already scheduled an appointment for her. Thankfully(?), she did have a slight headache. I wasn't going to take her complaints about ear pain lightly because it was sudden and she has had the lingering cold. But, yes, I did consider not calling and just letting her sleep it off. Despite her quick turnaround, I brought her in. The verdict? She was diagnosed with bilateral acute otitis media. Most of the cases are viral and don't require antibiotics, but this was likely a secondary infection. Ten days of antibiotics. I must say that despite her refusal to rest properly, my daughter is a good patient. She drank a lot of fluids, including chicken soup that my friend made and brought over. Moreover, she took her first dose of the antibiotic immediately in the car. The pharmacist made it easy for us with the free dosing spoon.

Ear infections are not contagious, but the resurgence of her cold may be, so she won't be going to school until she has taken 24 hours of antibiotics. However, she does not want to miss her clay class after school. Her first dose of the antibiotic was in the car. I just gave her her second dose. I had to wake her, but I wouldn't want to delay her dose to give the bacteria a chance to adapt to the antibiotic. Giving this class of antibiotics (cephalosporin) on time ensures killing of the bacteria. Timing is key; for the visit with the pediatrician and for giving the medication.