EPIDEMIC CONJUNCTIVITIS
Recently, there have been a growing number of children and adults with symptoms of fever, runny nose, and conjunctivitis. Conjunctivitis is the inflammation of the white of the eyes. It causes redness of the eyes and yellowish discharge.
The cause is most probably the highly contagious adenovirus. In addition to symptoms in your eyes, this virus may cause other symptoms such as fever, preauricular lymph node, coughing, sore throat, upper respiratory tract infection, skin rashes. These symptoms may last from 7 – 10 days.
There is no specific treatment against the adenovirus. The treatment is symptomatic and includes rest, hydration, antipyretics (to reduce fever and treat pain), special eye drops to reduce ocular symptoms and prevent superinfection; nasal sprays or cough medications, and treatment of complications.
Prevention of infection is important to reduce the spread of the virus, by keeping sick children at home until symptoms are gone and by maintaining good hand hygiene.
If your child or anyone else in your family has these symptoms, you should seek medical advice from our paediatricians or doctors who will advise you to keep your child away from school or stay away from work to prevent further spreading of the virus.
