Simple Strategies to Prevent Eye Injuries

Eye injuries can become serious and may result in loss of vision. It is essential that we try our best to avoid them in the first place!

Summer is a time for many memorable events – including family barbecues, fireworks, home projects, and many outdoor activities. An emergency visit to your eye doctor should not be one of them.

Eye injuries, even those which may initially seem mild, can become serious and may result in loss of vision. As such, it is essential that we try our best to avoid them in the first place!

Here are some guidelines and precautions you can use to reduce the risk of eye injury and infection:

Wear Eye Protection for Common Tasks

Safety goggles or safety glasses can be an easy way to prevent flying debris or chemicals from entering the eye. When looking to purchase safety eyewear, make sure it has the ANSI Z87.1 rating (this would written on the product itself).

Common tasks where you should wear eye protection include:

• Yard work and home improvement: Flying debris from mowers, “weed whackers”, leaf blowers, drills, saws, and other high-speed tools can result in eye injury from flying debris directly entering the eye or ricocheting from another object.
• Cleaning around the house: Common household chemicals can splash into the eye, resulting in not only irritation, but some may even cause burns and permanent damage.
• Car maintenance and projects: Many injuries are caused by rust/metal shavings falling or flying into the eye.

Firework and Sparkler Safety

• Fireworks should only be handled by professionals and should be avoided unless attending a professionally controlled show. Those working with or even near them should always wear safety eye protection.
• Sparklers are common, but dangerous as well. They should be avoided and pose a burn hazard, not only to the person handling the sparkler but also to bystanders. Severe vision loss can occur if hot arcs enter the eye.

Appropriate Sport Eye Protection

• Accidents during sports are a common cause of eye injuries. These may include flying hands/fingers during close contact sports (i.e. basketball, volleyball, etc.), high speed ball/puck, or injuries from objects like hockey sticks. Sports glasses with an ASTM F803 rating provide the best protection.

UV Protection – Sunglasses

• It is recommended to have a pair of sunglasses with 100% UV Protection. Good sunglasses offering UV protection should have a label indicating 100% UVA/UVB protection rating or a UV400 rating. If sunglasses do not have one of these ratings, then they should be avoided. Never look directly at the sun, even with sunglasses.

No Swimming in Contact Lenses

• Do not wear contact lenses when swimming. Any water (even chlorinated) can contain micro-organisms which may be absorbed by the lens and cause a subsequent eye infection. Some organisms, such as Acanthamoeba – can result in severe infections and ulcers resulting in permanent loss of vision.
• If you are going to swim and must wear your lenses, at minimum wear a good pair of swim goggles to ensure no water enters the eyes. There is still risk of eye infection, and you should dispose of the contact lenses immediately after swimming.

Wash Hands Frequently

• Habitually washing your hands – especially after handling chemicals and/or touching various surfaces, can go a long way in reducing risk of eye injury and infection.

If you do injure or get something in your eye, promptly seek medical attention and treatment from your local optometrist or ophthalmologist. If unable to locate an eye doctor, then go to the nearest emergency room.

Written by Hamza Dar, OD, an optometrist at Marble Valley Eye Care, a department of Rutland Regional Medical Center