Eye Injuries in Children and How to Prevent Them | Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month

Eye injuries can occur in children of all ages, from infants through teens. August is Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month, and it’s a great time to make sure you are taking the necessary precautions to prevent eye injuries. 

Common Types of Eye Injuries in Children 

There are a few different types of eye injuries that are the most common in children, including the following:

Trauma
Trauma to the eye itself or surrounding tissue or bone is a common type of eye injury in school-age children and teens. Eye trauma can be something as minor as a black eye or as serious as a ruptured globe.

According to The National Eye Institute, sports-related injuries are the most common cause of vision loss in school-age children. Various sports can lead to eye injuries, but baseball seems to be the most likely to lead to injuries. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, in children between five and 14, eye injuries occur most often due to baseball. Other causes of trauma to the eye in children are car accidents, falls, and the misuse of tools. 

Prevention: To reduce your child’s risk of trauma to the eye, consider the following:

• Make sure your child is wearing the appropriate eyewear for the sport they are doing. The AAO reports that about 90 percent of children’s eye injuries can be prevented by wearing protective eyewear.
• If you have young children, install baby gates to prevent falls.
• Always have your child buckle their seatbelt.
• Keep tools and sharp objects out of the reach of little hands. Remind older kids to handle tools cautiously.

Chemical Burns
Chemical burns to the eye can occur quickly and lead to permanent vision loss. Young children may accidentally get into various potentially harmful substances, such as pesticides, detergent, and bleach, which splashes into their eyes. Older kids may develop a chemical burn if products they are using, such as paint or glue, get into their eye while working on a project.

Prevention: To prevent chemicals burns to the eyes in children, keep the following suggestions in mind:

• Store all chemicals where young children cannot reach them.
• Have older kids wear safety goggles when doing a project that involves working with chemicals.
• Consider buying safer household products. In some cases, hazardous chemicals, such as cleaning supplies, can be replaced with other less harmful substances. Using products that are less toxic decreases the risk of an eye injury if the product was to splash into an eye accidentally.

Corneal Abrasions 
Corneal abrasions are a common injury in children. They can occur if dirt, sand, or other irritant gets into the eyes. Most corneal abrasions are minor. But serious injuries are also possible.

Prevention: It’s almost impossible to prevent all specs of dirt or dust from getting into your child’s eye. But there are a few things you can do, including:
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• Teach your children not to throw dirt or sand when playing.
• Tell your child not to rub their eye if they get something in it.
• Have your child avoid wearing contact lens while a corneal abrasion heals. 

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What Should You Do If Your Child Injures Their Eye? 

Children’s eye injuries vary widely in severity. Even foreign material in the eye can lead to a abrasion that should be evaluated. Any time your child sustains an injury to their eye, it’s best to be seen by a doctor. There are a few additional things to keep in mind:

• Stay calm. When a child sustains an eye injury, it can be frightening. But try to remain calm. If you’re upset, it’s likely your child will be, too.
• Do not try to get a foreign body out of the eye with a tweezer.
• Splash water on a chemical burn and get emergency medical care.
• Gently cover a puncture wound to the eye.
• Do not put pressure on the eye after an injury.   

We hope that by taking the precautions above you keep your children free from eye injuries. If you have any questions or would like to schedule an appointment, please phone our office at 508-746-8600. 
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