Excessive blinking & sore eyes

[ethanmichelle]

My son is nearly 7. Very much the same problem and has been for the last 2 years. Excessive blinking which comes and goes for periods of weeks to months. It is really frustrating. It has varying degrees of irritation and we have seen so many specialists and still noone can give us an answer. We have tried regular allergy drops but they are not consistent in working and a ton of other drops and medications too. Allergy tests came back negative. It is very frustrating as when they can't find a medical answer they say it must just be a "habit". I just don't believe that to be true. My son complains his eyes are "hurting" and making him blink (hard blink, lijke a quick squint). It usually happens a few in a row. There has to be an answer about what is causing this!! It started 2 years ago with redness and constant tears in one eye, then in its next phase caused irritation in both eyes,and in different phases has seen extreme redness/bloodshot eyes, sometimes itchiness sometimes not, to now more frequently just crazy blinking. He is otherwise a happy, active, intelligent, social, vivacious child. It is comforting reading reports of similar cases to know he's not the only one! I am so worried there is something wrong that none of the many specialists we've seen haven't picked up.

[xmelax35]

My son has the blinking issue and seemed to have itchy eyes.  He felt as though there was something in there all the time.  He then developed other things (long story) but I was told it was part of his motorized tic disorder.  Again (as I state in other forums) I have to wonder about this too.  Glad others were able to give you an answer, as for a long long time I tried to get answers from physicians and no one would help us.  They always treat him for some other condition he does not have.

[MyAmigo6756]

Hello, Looks like it has been some time, did you every found the issue to this problem?

[specialmom]

We went through a period of eye blinking.  My son has a developmental delay called sensory integration disorder and also has anxiety. When he was young, he would blink.  I ignored it.  It went away after some period of time.  I know that tics are common with his delay and anxiety so debated what to do.  He was quite young at the time.  Unfortunately, as time went on, later in elementary school, he did develop rotating tics.  By rotating, I mean they would change.  He had simple vocal tics that were either a hum or a word.  And he has had motor tics.  That change where he'll do one for a period of a couple of months, it goes away and another starts.  I would point out if the tic was super noticeable because I feared he'd be made fun of. My son would work on not doing that tic and finally, he has one that has remained that most don't notice him doing.  Hand fidgets (not those dumb spinning wheels that became all the range and are an insult to real hand fidgets, ha ha--- but ore of a squeezy ball type of thing), piece of chewing gum and breathing exercises.  My son, as he becomes less anxious has less tics.  So, working on the anxiety decreases any tic activity.  This is not the story of the Original poster but thought I'd share what is going on with my son (now 14) for some input.  Tell us about your situation!  Start a new post and we'll be happy to comment and help!

[ethanmichelle]

Thanks everyone for your comments. He is now 8 and a half and although the blinking is not completely gone, it has definitely improved. We did have all of the above checked out, with no luck. Trial and error has seen us manage it as best we can and find the things that worked best for him. Hopefully with age, he is building up resistance to whatever it is that causes him this grief.  :)

[binnks]

1st Q Does he have pus?

2nd Q Does he have crusty eyelids?

only thing i can think of is > Corneal Abrasion did they rule this out?

A scratch or trauma to the cornea, usually from a foreign body in the eye. Even if the eye waters profusely to cleanse the surface, the abrasion remains.

signs & symptoms - The presence of redness, tearing, and irritation that cause excessive blinking.

It is most often caused by dirt or small pieces of wood, metal, or paper that become embedded under the eyelid or an injury from a fingernail.

Treatment - Foreign bodies embedded in the cornea require removal following application of a topical anesthetic. Treatment consist of antibiotic eye drops or ointment and application of a pressure eye patch to prevent blinking.

Corneal epithelium heals rapidly within 24 - 48 hrs if treated

But you said he used drops, so maybe he was treated for this.
Hope your little boy gets diagnosed soon.( I see now that this is a old post )

[babygirl6152]

are there ANY raised areas on the eyeball?

I had the dry eye diagnosis and pterygia/pinguencula- sorry I don't know how to spell it- they actually did a surgery they called it- it was in the office and took 10 minutes and I drove home....... they "Plugged" my inner tear duct (by the nose) on each eye. I thoughts pluggind it would dry my eye but the other tear duct/outer one? makes more tears that do not re circulate or something- I know I am explaining it all wrong - LOL
It still gets irritated sometimes- I have to wear good sunglasses any time I go outside or they will grown- it's from dry weather and sun.
Also has he ever been prescribed Tobradex drops- it is a steroid and antibiotic--- I have to beg for these drops, but it ALWAYS gives me relief

[twoboys2006]

My 4 yr old has the same condition - any luck figuring out what this is?   Our latest bout seems to have been set off by excessively dry weather.  But - his eyes aren't red at all.  

[choppacha]

i used to stutter really bad when i was a child. but i guess i grew out of it. now my excessive blinking started when i was a senior in high school. i've only seen a nerve specialist back then and was told that it could be a hormone called DOPAMINE. when produced too much can cause problems in what ever area of the body the receptors to go. more about DOPAMINE can be found at http://****.*** or see a neurologist. that's just a thought and oh yeah my only problem was when i lay down to sleep at night was when it was the worst so he gave me SEROQUIL to help me go to sleep, but i didn't take it. i'm 25 years old now and still blink a lot. they call me BLINKY at my job...lol

[ethanmichelle]

Thanks for your comment. Yeah we have seen lots of optometrists. All say his vision is perfect. He can read right down to the 2nd last line on the chart!

[eel81]

have you taken him to an optometrist. he amy need glasses, it could be that simple. i would keep at it because this does not sound normal i t is not just ahbit,.