How To Deal With An Eye Injury From A Blunt Instrument

One of the most traumatic injuries anyone could sustain is an eye injury. Eyesight is a vital part of our senses, and the risk of losing your vision, either partially or totally is high when one of your eyes, or both are hit by a blunt instrument. Eye injuries from a blunt instrument could damage your eyelid, cornea, sclera, conjunctiva, lens, the tissues around the eyes, or your iris. It could also get as serious as affecting the optic nerve and retina.

There are different kinds of blunt eye trauma like the black eye, retinal detachment, hyphema, bleeding, lens displacement, and a tear in the iris. Each scenario will have distinct eye treatment. In other words, you cannot assume that the treatment for any eye injury is one and the same.

When you are having eye problems due to an eye injury, the first step would be to seek first aid as soon as possible. If you can, bring the blunt instrument that caused the eye injury when you visit the eye doctor or got to the emergency room of the nearest hospital.

In the case of a black eye, do not be dismayed with the blackish discoloration. This is a result of the blood seeping into the skin around the eye. Ordinarily, a black eye will be more a cosmetic problem than a serious eye problem. However, never assume this, rather, have an eye doctor see your eye to rule out any serious damage.

One complication that you might have when you sustain an eye injury from a blunt instrument is difficulty in opening your eyes. This is because the affected eye will shut close due to swelling and inflammation. However, eye treatment requires the eye doctor to find a way to open the eye and examine it for vision problems.

Retinal detachment as a result of trauma from a blunt instrument will need immediate eye treatment. If not, the entire retina may tear off, and this will cause major vision loss. At the start, you may just see floating stars, and your vision will be slightly blurred. However, this can advancer quickly and result in blindness. One way an eye doctor can resolve this situation is to recommend eye laser surgery to re-attach the part of the retina that is pulling away.

Hyphema, which is basically bleeding in the eye also result in vision loss because the blood could be putting too much pressure on the cornea or the eye. If immediate medical attention is sought, the doctor will be able to relieve the pressure with eye drops and complete bed rest, and avert permanent damage to the affected eye.

As you can see, with any eye problem arising from an eye injury should never be taken lightly. It does not matter if you feel pain or not because you need to make sure to rule out the chances of vision loss and do your utmost to protect your eyes.