Eye Emergencies
An injury to the eyeball or region around the eye that requires immediate medical attention.
What is it? (Overview)
Eye injuries are the most common and preventable causes of blindness. About 30,000 children under five years old hurt themselves by misusing toys and common household objects. The most common injuries result from falling and hitting furniture, playing with household cleaning products and utensils, and being involved in automobile accidents.
How do I know I have it? (Symptoms and Diagnosis)
The injured person may feel or see something in their eye or trapped under their eyelid. Symptoms may also include sensitivity to light, redness, swelling of the eye and eyelid, blurred vision, and bleeding. If there has been a blow on or around the eye, expect pain and dark blue and purple discoloration within 24 hours of the injury. Pain, reduced vision, and discoloration can signal internal damage to the eye; get professional attention right away. Cuts or abrasions to the eye can vary from slightly irritating to quite painful. If a chemical splashes into the eye, the person is likely to experience burning, itching, and swelling.
How can I treat it? (Treatments)
Blurred vision, pain in or around the eye, cut or torn eyelids, unusual pupil size, blood in or around the eye, protruding eyes, or swelling after an injury will require emergency first-aid and immediate medical attention. There are steps to take both before and after seeing an expert.
Blow to the eye (black eye)
- Wash your hands before you begin any first-aid.
- Apply a cold compress intermittently, (five-10 minutes on, 10-15 minutes off) without pressure. Use the cold compress for a day or two, then switch to a warm compress.
- Prop up the head with an extra pillow at night, and avoid any pressure on the eye by having the person sleep on the uninjured side of the face.
- If there is pain, severe discoloration, or vision problems, or if you can see any obvious abnormality of the eyeball, there may be internal damage or broken bones around the eye. See an expert right away.
- If the person is in pain, give them acetaminophen. Aspirin and ibuprofen can actually increase the bleeding.
- Gently cover the eye without applying pressure.
- Do not wash the eye with water or try to remove any object yourself. Seek medical attention immediately.
- The doctor may prescribe medications to reduce the pain and to keep the pupil dilated to prevent infection.
- Rinse the eye area profusely with water. Hold the eye open if necessary.
- Seek medical attention right away. Call your local Poison Control center and be ready to give them the name of the chemical.
- The healthcare provider will continue to wash the eye, but the earlier you begin to flush out the chemical, the better. He may also treat the injury with an antibiotic ointment. The person may need further anesthetic drops and medication to keep the pupil dilated.
- To find a foreign body, have the person look up, down, and side-to-side. If you can see the object on the surface of the eye, try to flush it gently with water or saline. Or try lifting the upper eyelid and gently pulling downward on the lower eyelid to produce tears and wash the object out of the eye (fig. 1).
Rinse the eye clean once again after you have removed the object. - If you cannot flush out the object, cover both eyes with a cloth — without applying pressure — and call a healthcare provider. Do not try and remove anything that is embedded in the eye. Do not rub the eye.
- The doctor will need to dilate the pupil to remove larger foreign bodies. He may also prescribe an antibiotic ointment. An opthalmologist may need to surgically remove any embedded object.
How can I prevent it? (Prevention)
- Wearing safety goggles when you use tools or play sports.
- Point household chemicals away from your face or people standing around you.
- Pick up rocks and sticks before mowing the lawn.
- Do not lean over when changing the car battery.
- Follow instructions on contact lens usage. Clean them properly and take them in and out carefully.
For Children
Parents and caregivers need to pay close attention to young children to prevent accidents
- Do not buy toys with sharp edges, rigid points, spikes, or rods.
- Toys that fly or can be fired are potential hazards. Supervise young children when they play with moving toys. Keep toys stored in safe places so no one trips on them.
- For craft projects, provide child-sized, safety scissors but still pay close attention when children handle them.
- Make sure to keep children at a safe distance from power tools, heat sources, and chemicals.
- Store household products out of the reach of young, exploring fingers.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Resources
- American Medical Association
http://www.ama-assn.org - The Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary
www.meei.harvard.edu - The Mayo Clinic
www.mayoclinic.com - The Merck Manual
http://www.merck.com - University of Michigan M-Care
www.mcare.org - New England Eye Center
www.neec.com