Swollen droopy eye

[Tinijocaro]

DS 11 has woken up to a droopy eyelid, then the next day it swells up to the point that it is completely closed. This has happened several times in the past couple months.

Pediatrician sent us to an opthomalogist who put him on an antibiotic and when that one didn't work, tried another. Clearly not an infection so they did a ct scan. Showed swelling (duh!).

When it ballooned again, we took him back to the ped and she thought allergies so we put him on benedryl, zyrtec, and nasonex. It improved almost completely. Took him for allergy testing but he has no allergies and the allergist said this type of reaction is not at all typical of a person with allergies.

Blood test is next.

Has anyone out there experience anything like this? Any ideas? I've googled it to death and can't come up with anything.

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

As a child, I had odd "allergic" reactions like this. They never found out the cause. They eventually stopped.

 

[golfgal]

Look inside his eye lid and see if he has little white bumps in the red part. Our DS15's ophthalmologist said that is a clear sign of seasonal allergies that effect the eyes. DS15's eyes swell, but aren't droopy, when his allergies are bad. Also, it is possible to still have allergies and not test positive because you aren't allergic enough. When we first had DS15 tested when he was 8 or so, he didn't test positive to anything but the allergy dr said he clearly had symptoms of allergies and he was put on allergy meds-which help tremendously. His allergies have gotten worse over the years and we had him tested again about 2 years ago to see if we should adjust meds, etc. He had severe reactions to 10 thing and moderate reactions to 20 more things.

It could be something totally different too. It might be worth consulting a different eye dr -ophthalmologist not optometrist-one that specializes in eye disorders.

 

[Tinijocaro]

As a child, I had odd "allergic" reactions like this. They never found out the cause. They eventually stopped.

Are you allergic to anything? Have you been tested? Food allergies? I'm thinking we have to look into food allergies soon.

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

Are you allergic to anything? Have you been tested? Food allergies? I'm thinking we have to look into food allergies soon.

The doctors (plural, because I saw many) all thought that it was a food allergy, but I never tested positive. I went through years of testing. They finally gave up. They told my parents that I was clearly allergic to something, but not severely enough for it to register on the tests. I still have very minor "reactions", but even at age 43, I have no idea what they are tied to.

 

[tiggersbombed2]

I had a friend that had this happen and it was a spider bite. Does it get bruised looking at all? If not, I'm on the allergy boat...could he be allergic to dust mites? Poor thing, I hope you find out what it is soon!

 

[Christine]

I sort of have this happen but I doubt this is what your son is dealing with but here goes:

First off, I have very dry eyes. My right one is worse than the left one. You can have a Schirmer's (sp) test done at the opthamologist to see if this is the case but probably not the case in a child.

Because of the dryness, my right eye often gets itchy and red. Sometimes the eyelid gets involved and the skin will get itchy and droop and swell. I have to use a cortisone cream on it for a few days and up my use of antihistamine drops and eye lubricant. My opthamologist attributes these issues to dry eye exacerbated by eczema on the eyelid. My left eye will have the itchiness on the eyelid only occasionally.

Some things for me that will trigger the swelling and itching are eating foods high in sodium. Most women get "puffy" with this as do I, however, that darned right eye is WAY more affected by it.

My last flare up occurred last week when I had a meal from Panera that I later found out had 2200 mg of sodium in it. YIKES.

I do think it would be odd for a child to have dry eye; however, I tend to believe there is some allergic process going on.

 

[SaraJayne]

I sort of have this happen but I doubt this is what your son is dealing with but here goes:

First off, I have very dry eyes. My right one is worse than the left one. You can have a Schirmer's (sp) test done at the opthamologist to see if this is the case but probably not the case in a child.

Because of the dryness, my right eye often gets itchy and red. Sometimes the eyelid gets involved and the skin will get itchy and droop and swell. I have to use a cortisone cream on it for a few days and up my use of antihistamine drops and eye lubricant. My opthamologist attributes these issues to dry eye exacerbated by eczema on the eyelid. My left eye will have the itchiness on the eyelid only occasionally.

My DS has something similar...but his is strictly the skin inflamed and swollen, not the drooping the OP is talking about. He's woken up a few times with his eyes swollen shut.

His is due to eczema only, though. We luckily have a script now for cream to put on it when it starts to flare.

 

[cabanafrau]

A friend of mine started having this happen to her. After a few doctor appointments and much experimentation w/ laundry soap, make-up, food diaries, facial washes, antibiotics, allergy medicines, etc., etc. it finally went away and stayed away after she put a different cover on her mattress to keep allergens down.

 

[laughinplace199]

Sounds like an allergic reaction to me.

When I was a kid, either one or both of my eyes would swell shut when I took baby aspirin, although it took a while for my mom to make the connection. I was tested by an allergist and other than aspirin, the only other allergies I had were seasonal (and I was aware of those already).

When my DD11 was 3, I gave her peanut butter for the first time. She started to develop hives and both of her eyes swelled shut. Also, sometimes her eyes will start to swell when her seasonal allergies get bad. Benadryl always helps to bring the swelling down when this happens.

 

[Tinijocaro]

I checked and he has no white bumps inside. I think the thing that concerns me is the fact that the lid droops first for a day or so, then gets all puffy. If it was just swelling, I'd probably be thinking allergies but with the droopiness...I don't know.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

DS 11 has woken up to a droopy eyelid, then the next day it swells up to the point that it is completely closed. This has happened several times in the past couple months.

Pediatrician sent us to an opthomalogist who put him on an antibiotic and when that one didn't work, tried another. Clearly not an infection so they did a ct scan. Showed swelling (duh!).

When it ballooned again, we took him back to the ped and she thought allergies so we put him on benedryl, zyrtec, and nasonex. It improved almost completely. Took him for allergy testing but he has no allergies and the allergist said this type of reaction is not at all typical of a person with allergies.

Blood test is next.

Has anyone out there experience anything like this? Any ideas? I've googled it to death and can't come up with anything.

What kind of allergist was this and what kind of testing was done?

Eye swelling shut is certainly allergies.

As far as the droopy eyelid, not sure about that.

As far as testing, did he have the "serum test" or the back scratch test that only registers high/severe allergies?

 

[Tinijocaro]

I wasn't there but I know they did the back scratch test, not sure what the serum test is. Maybe that's why he sent us for bloowork? Could that be the serum test?

Here's a picture, not a great one...

I did this from photobucket, why the heck is it so small?

 

[JessicaR]

I checked and he has no white bumps inside. I think the thing that concerns me is the fact that the lid droops first for a day or so, then gets all puffy. If it was just swelling, I'd probably be thinking allergies but with the droopiness...I don't know.

I agree with you. Is it always the same eye? How about a follow up or a second opinion with another eye doctor.

Hope it gets figured out.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I wasn't there but I know they did the back scratch test, not sure what the serum test is. Maybe that's why he sent us for bloowork? Could that be the serum test?

Here's a picture, not a great one...

I did this from photobucket, why the heck is it so small?

The backscratch test ONLY tests for high to severe allergies. It does not mean that your son does not have any allergies.

Blood serum testing is a time consuming process where you get shots in your arm and they keep amping up the allergen to find out at which level your allergy is at.

Let's see, I have 1 high allergy with the back scratch test (cockroaches). I had about 30+ mild allergies with the serum test.

Eye swelling is a hallmark allergy symptom. I would really question your allergist as to their credentials to be honest.

OH and maybe I can help with why it is one eye....Which side does he sleep on? The crap pools and that is why only one is swelling perhaps? Just a shot in the dark from my experience.

 

[Tinijocaro]

I agree with you. Is it always the same eye? How about a follow up or a second opinion with another eye doctor.

Hope it gets figured out.

Yes, always the same eye. We did go to another opthamologist but this was after he started on the allergy meds so everything looked good.

 

[GAGirlInVA]

Hmmm.... After the rounds of allergists that we've been to and all the allergies we've dealt with, I'd think ONE eye swelling isn't allergy related.

And I've never heard anyone mention a droopy eye with allergies either.

I hope you figure it out soon. Poor guy.

 

[beachlover9395]

Yeah, just throwing this out there. I'm always the one that's going to come up with the most obscure illnesses out there, and they're always the most unlikely, but information is power and it never hurts to have information.

This past week, there was a national story that came out about how your pets can make you sick, especially if they sleep with you. Here's a link:

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/health/Vet-Advises-Banning-Pets-from-Beds-114494904.html

http://www.usatoday.com/yourlife/pets/2011-01-24-Petsleeping24_ST_N.htm

One of the illnesses mentioned that our pets can bring in from the outside to us was Chagas disease, which I had heard of before but couldn't remember what it was. So I looked it up and one of the main symptoms was swelling and drooping of the eyelid. Google it for more info, but always remember to not let Google freak you out. This is for informational purposes only.

Once again, I'm guessing your son almost certainly doesn't have this, but it never hurts to remember, just in case. I hope he's better soon and you and his doctors find out what's wrong -- good luck to all of you!

 

[Tinijocaro]

I'll definitely look into this. Sound rare for N. america, more of an African thing but you never know. Thanks.

Yeah, just throwing this out there. I'm always the one that's going to come up with the most obscure illnesses out there, and they're always the most unlikely, but information is power and it never hurts to have information.

This past week, there was a national story that came out about how your pets can make you sick, especially if they sleep with you. Here's a link:

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/health/Vet-Advises-Banning-Pets-from-Beds-114494904.html

http://www.usatoday.com/yourlife/pets/2011-01-24-Petsleeping24_ST_N.htm

One of the illnesses mentioned that our pets can bring in from the outside to us was Chagas disease, which I had heard of before but couldn't remember what it was. So I looked it up and one of the main symptoms was swelling and drooping of the eyelid. Google it for more info, but always remember to not let Google freak you out. This is for informational purposes only.

Once again, I'm guessing your son almost certainly doesn't have this, but it never hurts to remember, just in case. I hope he's better soon and you and his doctors find out what's wrong -- good luck to all of you!

 

[gillep]

I work in tropical infectious diseases and Chagas is very common in South and Central America however due to immigration and other factors it is now something that we are seeing in the U.S. as well, but mostly in the south especially areas close to the Mexico border (it is still not very common though in the U.S.). I still think it is very unlikely that this is it but it doesn't hurt to look into it especially if you are having no luck going down the allergy route. Have you asked your doctor about doing an immunoCAP allergy blood test they take longer to get results but can be helpful if scratch tests don't come up with anything. It also wouldn't hurt to ask about eczema as it can have a large degree of varying presentations especially in children. Good luck this must be really frustrating for both of you