Massage (known medically as Crigler massage ) uses gentle pressure to create hydraulic force, popping that stubborn valve open and flushing the duct clean. Before you begin, wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water. Trim your fingernails to avoid scratching the delicate eye area.
Dip a cotton ball in warm water. Wipe from the inner corner of the eye (near the nose) to the outer corner. Use a fresh cotton ball for each wipe.
For most infants, this condition resolves on its own within the first year. But there is a simple, drug-free technique that can help speed up the process, avoid infections, and bring relief to your little one: Why Do Ducts Get Blocked? Imagine a drainpipe smaller than a grain of rice. That is your baby’s tear duct. It runs from the inner corner of the eye down into the nose. In up to 20% of newborns, the valve at the bottom of that pipe (the Hasner valve) doesn’t open properly at birth. Tears have nowhere to go, so they pool in the eye, overflow down the cheek, and stagnate, leading to that sticky, white-to-yellow discharge.