INFECTIONS OF THE EVE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 31 August 1938, Page 8

INFECTIONS OF THE EVE

EARLY TREATMENT IMPORTANT. SPRING INFECTIONS, i Apart from the fact that great care should be taken to protect and strengthen the eyes after measles, which have been and still are so prevalent this year, there are various infections of the eye that are always especially common in the spring. One is, in fact, often known as spring catarrh. The common catarrh that occurs in this country is due to infection from ordinary pus-forming germs. The onset is usually sudden, and in some cases the pain appears so suddenly that one thinks that there is a foreign body such as sand present, or that one has been bitten by an insect. The first sign is smarting, but there is soon swelling of the lid, and the eye becomes red and bloodshot. In many cases light is painful and the eye is kept closed. yVithin a few hours there is a copious discharge which is at first watery, but later becomes sticky, and even consists of white or yellow pus. The infection may remain in one eye, but there is always the danger of the spread of the infection to the other eye. This must be carefully guarded against.

VALUE OF WARM BORACIC. The treatment of this form of conjunctivities must be commenced as soon as possible. The eye should be bathed frequently with warm boracic lotion. The lotion is made by dissolving a half-teaspoon ■ of boracic acid in a little boiling water and filling up to a cup with warm water. The patient lies on the back, and the lotion is poured into the angle formed by the nose. The eye is then opened, , and the lotion will flow across the eye. An eye lotion glass is useful, but every care must be taken to boil the glass. In addition to the bathing, eye-drops are used. In the early stages, and. if the discharge is watery, two grains of sulphate of zinc and five grain of boracic acid dissolved in one ounce of distilled water should be used. This is placed in the corner of the eye while on the back and the eye slowly opened. In the more acute cases, with much pus, twenty per cent solution' of argyrol is the better solution for the ■ drops.

WHEN TO USE VASELINE. In addition to these measures, it is necessary to prevent the lids from sticking together. This is prevented by smearing the edges of the lids with vaseline night and morning. If the lids are allowed to stick, there is grave danger of a corneal ulcer forming, and this involves danger to the sight. If improvement does not occur with home treatment, a medical opinion should be obtained as soon as possible. A milder and more chronic form of the conjunctivitis is also common. In this case it is sometimes necessary to have the whole inside of the lids painted with strong solutions by a doctor.’ A more dangerous form of conjunctivitis is trachoma or sandy blight. This is a fly-borne disease, and is common in some parts of the interior. The lids are swollen, but not so much as in the other form. The eyes water more, and the disease becomes chronic. It requires prolonged expert treatment.