Treatment of conjunctivitis

[mrsjohnson88]

Does anyone know if it's safe to use Chloramphenicol eye drops in the first trimester? I woke up this morning with a swollen eye and some sticky discharge (sorry!). Been to the pharmacy who have given me these eye drops to use but I completely forgot to mention I was pregnant! The advice sheet just says to consult your doctor or pharmacist. Doesn't say not to use and the info online is a bit mixed. Help!

 

[DocL]

Hi Mrsjohnson88,

You could try and use simple measures such as lubricant eye drops, and washing hands regular, separate towels etc first, if you've not had any symptoms for long. Most of the time, conjunctivitis is caused by a virus, and therefore chloramphenicol wouldn't be necessary. However if after the next week it doesn't settle on its own, I'd try and see your GP. I think that fusidic acid is a preferable topical antibiotic in pregnancy (if one was required).

Hope that's of some help.

 

[mrsjohnson88]

Thank you DocL, that sounds like great advice x