Can you use saline drops on a child for dry eyes?
FEB 03, 2022
Question:
My granddaughter is 9. She said her stepmother tried to put drops (salt saline) in her eyes as my granddaughter said her eyes were a little dry. Is this safe at this age? It was a one-time thing, but we were advised this would be dangerous to her eyes as these are adult drops. Any help you can provide me with would be greatly appreciated.
Answer:
One should always be careful when giving adult medications to children as the drugs may not be safe in the same quantity or for children at all. Having said that, artificial tears are among the safest eye drops since they consist mostly of synthetic tear lubricants and inactive ingredients. However, any eye drop that contains an active medicative ingredient (such as redness relievers, anti-allergy drops, steroids, etc.) should be used with extreme caution in kids. At times, even artificial tears are packaged with redness relievers or allergy medications, so be sure to check the ingredients. If you are unsure about the safety of the eye drops, check first with your pediatrician or ophthalmologist.