Eye Injuries – Causes of Eye Injuries

The structure of your face helps protect your eyes from injury. Still, injuries can damage your eye, sometimes severely enough that you could lose your vision. Most eye injuries are preventable. If you play sports or work in certain jobs, you may need protection.

Eye injuries range from the very minor, such as getting soap in your eye, to the catastrophic, resulting in permanent loss of vision. A black eye is often a minor injury, but it can also appear when there is significant eye injury or head trauma. A visit to the doctor or an eye specialist may be required to rule out serious injury, particularly if you're not certain of the cause of the black eye.

A large abrasion may take a long time to heal, and can cause an inflammatory reaction within the eyeball. Sometimes a sharp object cuts into the deep tissue of the cornea. This can permanently change your vision. Debris in the scratch, such as shreds of tree bark, can lead to infection and ulceration of the cornea.

Blunt trauma occurs when something hits you in the eye. Blunt trauma causes most sports-related eye injuries. Some serious examples are an orbital blowout fracture (a broken bone under the eyeball), a ruptured globe (broken eyeball) and a detached retina (the part of the eye that is sensitive to light and helps you see). Bruising of the eye and eyelid (a "black eye") looks bad but usually is a less serious injury.

Causes of Eye Injuries

Common causes of eye injury include domestic or industrial accidents (for instance, from using a hammer or liquid chemicals or cleaners), assault, car battery explosions, sports injuries (including air-gun or paint pellet-gun injuries), and motor vehicle collisions (including air-bag injuries). Exposure to strong ultraviolet light, as from a welding arc or bright sunlight reflected off snow, can injure the transparent dome on the front surface of the eye (cornea)

Chemical exposures and burns: Often the result of a splash of liquid getting in the eye, a chemical burn can occur in a number of ways. Many chemicals, such as soap, sunscreen, and even tear gas, are primarily irritants to the eye and do not usually cause permanent damage. However, acids and alkalis are highly caustic and can cause severe damage.

Bright sunlight (especially when the sun is reflecting off snow or water) can burn your eyes if you do not wear sunglasses that filter out ultraviolet (UV) light. Eyes that are not protected by a mask can be burned by exposure to the high-intensity light of a welder's equipment (torch or arc). The eyes also may be injured by other bright lights, such as from tanning booths or sunlamps.

Internal pressure in your eye, called intraocular pressure, allows your eye to hold its shape and function properly. Intraocular pressure is like air in a balloon — too much pressure inside the balloon affects its shape and may even cause it to pop. In the case of your eye, too much pressure can damage the optic nerve.

Power tools, lawn mowers, trimmers and weed whackers all pose potential hazards to your eyes. Be sure that all of your power tools are in good condition and only operate them with the safety features engaged. You should also make sure that any rocks and debris are cleared from your lawn before mowing (so they don't get propelled into your face while cutting), and wear protective goggles when using any power equipment to shield your eyes from dust, debris, sparks, fumes and more.

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