Are You Declining the Eye Drops?

mrsj0423

I know that just about every baby born in a hospital is given the Erythromycin or less common Silver Nitrate eye drops to prevent infection.  But many parents are not even really aware of the procedure or if they are they just go with it.  However, knowing that I absolutely do not have gonorrhea or chlamydia, I feel it unnecessary to administer these drops to our just born baby.  The drops can cause temporary blurred vision, burning/stinging, and eye redness.  I have heard that in many states, the drops are "mandatory", although you have the right to refuse any medical treatment.  Just wondering if any of you were planning on refusing the drops.  Is it something I should bring up with our OB, or just bring it up after the delivery?  Or slip it into out birth plan?  TIA 

stahlop

We didn't do it, but we had a home birth.  My MW legally still had to ask, but there is no reason to do it if you don't have the STD's it's protecting from.  Even if you do, I think it's a pretty slim chance that your child will become blind if you still decline the drops.  Bring it up with your OB and put it in your birth plan.

BrideNamedMeg

We declined them in the hospital with our first and at home with our second.  Totally unnecessary, IMO.  

pixieprincss

We did Erythro (fully educated) with DS at the hospital. We had planned to delay until after BFing and bonding, but he was born in semi-distress and with meconium (which OBs treat as a concern, though a MW likely would not), so it happened right after birth since he was already at the table. We thought about declining, but our OB for that PG felt that it is preventative for non-STD infections as well.

Personally, I could take it or leave it. I didn't feel that it was a detriment to have it and in a hospital birth, we felt like it was one of those point that we could just go with to focus any "fight" for things that really mattered. Now, if it was silver nitrate--I would not have consented to that, but I don't honestly even remember the pros and cons of that.

This PG, we are doing a non-hospital birth. We will not do any eye drops, save for some BM squirted in the eyes.

I don't think slipping it into your birth plan will matter. You need to make a decision and voice it. Depending on your provider, what you write in a document might not even be read, and even if it is read it may not be remembered. IMO, birth preferences are best used as a discussion and articulation tool not as any sort of firm communication or directive.

chris&kendra1

I have just started thinking about this as a FTM. I'm not completely familiar with these drops since I only just started looking into it, but is there SOLE purpose to prevent eye problems due to possible STD's in the birth canal? So, if you get a c-section, do the doctors still do the eye drops?

If that is the only purpose they serve, I certainly think we don't need them since DH and I are 100% sure we have no STDs.

jandb2011

Didn't get them w/ DS and won't w/ this LO either.

BrideNamedMeg

chris&kendra1:

I have just started thinking about this as a FTM. I'm not completely familiar with these drops since I only just started looking into it, but is there SOLE purpose to prevent eye problems due to possible STD's in the birth canal? So, if you get a c-section, do the doctors still do the eye drops?

If that is the only purpose they serve, I certainly think we don't need them since DH and I are 100% sure we have no STDs.

They say that there are other possible infections they can get, but I've never seen any evidence (compelling or otherwise) to convince me.  They do the eye drops even with a c-section because it's standard protocol.  

dosafyre

We got it...just delayed a bit after some skin to skin time and nursing. It was no big deal...DD didn't seem to notice it or be uncomfortable in any way, and they have blurry vision when first born anyways. Bacteria can happen...I didn't feel the risk to to vision was worth skipping a little antibiotic ointment.

annabelle.27

I declined them (homebirth, although my midwife carried it with her).

LindseyJW

we declined. 

don't slip it in your birth plan. that would be way to trusting of them to actually read and abide by it. this is such a routine procedure that you really need to make it clear and then make it clear again and then be sure to stop them when they go to do it anyway.  

tokenhoser

I let them do the eye drops. We delayed about an hour to cuddle and breastfeed. It just wasn't my hill to die on - my wishes were respected, but I let some things happen the "normal" way rather than fighting every single thing.

If you want to skip them, you need to talk about it with your OB and make your wishes clear after the birth. Things don't go off the normal routine without a reason to.

wannabigfam

You CAN refuse anything.  Eye drops however are one of the "Red flags" at many hospitals where if you refuse, they might contact social services.  No biggie - they'll talk to you and as long as you can coherently explain your reasoning for refusing, it's not a problem.  If you're at a hospital that is more natural birth friendly (where a lot of people refuse these types of things) then it probably won't be a big deal.  MOST of the time they just threaten to contact social services & don't follow through.

 We had it on our birth plan to decline the drops; we ended up going ahead and doing them and vitamin k but declining the hep B shot, no problem.  The reason was that I ended up being GBS positive but didn't know it until after the birth (I delivered early) and they said that the eye drops can help w/ GBS w/ the infant.  Not sure if that was true or they lied, but since I didn't have the time to research it, I trusted the midwife.

 This next birth I will likely refuse the eye drops and hep B, I will be okay w/ vitamin k.

Harper'smom

We signed a waiver with our birth center baby but they did it automatically with our hospital/surgical birth.

Tash13

I put it on my birth plan with my first that i didn't want them right away but the nurse didn't read the plan and did them anyway.  We're declining them all together this time around but we're having a home birth so it shouldn't be the same struggle.

pugznploons

dumb question, are the eye drops the same thing as the "eye goop" that you see all over the eyes of newborns?  It always looks like someone smears vaseline or something on their eyes

mkflower3000

DH and I are actually each other's first and only partners, and both of us are clean so there's no reason to worry about LO getting any STDs. Our BC has no problem with us declining the drops, so we will be.

littlemac1117

We will be declining them. With DS, they did them because I had a c/s and had no idea what was going on. A lot of things happened with DS that we weren't made aware of first, but that is a whole different story. There is no reason for us to do the eye drops, as I have and never have had an std, neither has DH. So we will decline.

Sorry if this reads really weird, I am super tired.

couliegirl

I'd talk to your provider about it. My MW group said that the only thing they would fight me on would be the Vit K shot. I hadn't planned on declining that anyway, so  we're good to go.

Vixey529

We are declining them. I have been tested several times for the STDs in question over the course of my marriage, and always negative. DH and I are faithful to one another, so I do not see any reason to subject my newborn to that.

Now, if someone did not entirely trust their DH to be faithful... that is another issue, and, I'm assuming, part of the reason why they are a standard procedure.

flyer23

tokenhoser:

I let them do the eye drops. We delayed about an hour to cuddle and breastfeed. It just wasn't my hill to die on - my wishes were respected, but I let some things happen the "normal" way rather than fighting every single thing.

If you want to skip them, you need to talk about it with your OB and make your wishes clear after the birth. Things don't go off the normal routine without a reason to.

This is exactly how I felt about it. DD was a hospital birth and the "normal" way was to do eye ointment. DS was a homebirth, and the "normal" way was to skip it. So DD got it, and DS didn't. I'd rather *not* do it, but I don't think it's a huge deal either way.

Definitely talk about it with your OB ahead of time. I originally planned hospital birth with DS, at a VERY natural birth friendly hospital... and getting eye ointment was one of the very few non-negotiables. The nurses were happy to delay doing it for an hour, and couldn't stop you from wiping it off immediately (wink wink, nudge nudge) -- but simply putting it in your birth plan was not going to stop it going on.

Alliebooberz

I had a hospital birth and refused the drops. They asked a couple times and confirmed no drops right before he came out. It was nbd. I let the nurses know that I knew it was for stds and that I didn't have any and wouldn't be doing the drops. 

 When DS was less than 2 weeks old, he had a clogged tear duct that I took him to the pedi for and she explained that the eye drops at birth usually cause a minor chemical burn and that was probably what his eye irritation was. Whoa !! I quickly explained that he didn't receive the drops and she was happy I had educated myself and refused them since they weren't necessary. Since we knew for sure it wasn't a chemical burn, she diagnosed a blocked tear duct.  

x0stephanie

We did, I had a std test along with my pap before I got pregnant and all was neg so no need.  My midwife didn't really suggest them either.  Like she gave you a choice, but made them seem unnecessary (and I agree)