Hello Dr. Prachi Agashe,
My daughter had a pink eye last week. Her teacher sent a note asking me to verify with a doctor if she was fit to be sent to school. She has since recovered. What should I do the next time she has one? Should a kid with pink eye be kept at home every time?
– Mrs. Anupa Das, Andheri, Mumbai.
Hello Mrs. Das,
Whether a child with pink eye should be kept home depends on what has caused his/ her pink eye.
Pink eye (also called conjunctivitis) can be due to a number of reasons like:
- infections (bacterial or viral)
- allergy or
- due to some irritant (like soap)
If your child has a pink eye due to an infection, s/he should be kept home to avoid passing it on to other kids. Viral and bacterial conjunctivitis are highly contagious and can spread by hand-to-eye contact when your kid rubs their eyes or their eye discharges touch objects that are handled by other kids.
On the other hand, if your child’s pink eye is because of an allergy or irritant, it is not something that other kids can catch from your kid.
If in doubt, keep a child with a fever or eye discharge at home. Visit your child eye specialist to find out what kind your kid’s pink eye is.
– Dr. Prachi Agashe,
Pediatric Ophthalmologist,
Agashe Paediatric SuperSpeciality Care, Mumbai, India.
Ask Dr. Agashe is a patient information feature brought to you by Agashe Paediatric SuperSpeciality Care. One parent’s question is picked every month to feature in this section. If you too have a query about Pediatric Orthopedics or Pediatric Ophthalmology, do feel free to write in. Our child eye specialist, Dr. Prachi Agashe and our kids bone specialist Dr. Mandar Agashe will be happy to answer your queries for you. Please note that these suggestions are purely on the basis of the information provided. It is not intended to take the place of clinical examinations or investigations. Do send in your queries as comments below or via email at contactus@agashehospital.com
