Eye burn: first aid and treatment

The human eye is a unique organ, through which we see everything that is around us. But when the eye is affected by various negative factors, such as extremely high or low temperature, hot sparks, chemicals, then we can not only lose our visual acuity, but even lose such a divine gift as the ability to see. Today we learn how to help a person who burns eyes under the influence of various factors. After all, properly provided first aid will not only facilitate the patient's condition, but also keep him a clear look.

What is eye burn?

This is a trauma of the anterior part of the organ of vision, which is the result of excessive chemical, temperature or radiation effects. Most often you can find a thermal burn of the eye with burning particles, welding or chemical elements. In such a trauma, the conjunctiva and the skin of the eyelids, the cornea, the tear ducts and the deeper structures of the organ of vision, all the way to the posterior parts of the eye, suffer first.

Degrees of defeat

Eye burn can be divided into 4 categories:

• The first stage is damage only to the surface part of the eye.
• The second degree - there is a slight darkening and reddening of the cornea of the eye.
• The third stage is a very severe opacification of the cornea. The eye is covered with a dense film.
• The fourth degree - a mutilation and a cornea, and retina.

Retinal burn: causes

• Effects of bright light after a long stay in the dark.
• Influence of ultraviolet. Although this does not threaten a person's sight loss, there are cases when sunlight, which is reflected from snow, falls sharply into the eyes of a person and can harm him (the so-called snow blindness, which is often found in the north of Russia, for example, in the city of Vorkuta). In addition, a retinal burn can occur due to the fact that the person will observe a solar eclipse without glasses.
• The impact of light from a searchlight and laser beams.

Corneal burn: causes

• Work with chemicals such as acid, cosmetics, perfumes, medicines, paints, etc.
• Thermal damage to the eye - a corneal burn of the eye, obtained by the action of a hot liquid, such as boiling water, steam, hot oil.
• Work with the welding machine.
• Combined burn of the cornea of the eye - damage when using combustible objects or mixtures.

Symptoms of defeat

The following indicators can be considered signs of injury:

• Frequent headaches;
• Burning sensation in the eyes;
• Redness of the white shell of the organ of vision;
• Edema of the eyelids;
• Dislike of penetration of light;
• Tearing;
• Deterioration of vision;
• Sensation of something stranger in the eye.

First aid in getting an eye burn by welding

• The injured person should be offered painkillers "Analgin", "Diclofenac", as well as antihistamines "Suprastin", "Tavegil".
• The person should be taken to a darkened room, where the sun's rays will not fall. If there is no way to identify him in such a room, then at least you need to put on his eyes dark glasses.
• Call an ambulance.

Treatment of eye burns resulting from working with a welding machine

• Upon arrival, the doctor first helps the patient who burns the eye with welding, as follows: dilutes several crystals of potassium permanganate in boiled water , then necessarily rinses the eyes with this solution and takes the patient to the hospital.
• Already in the medical institution, the doctor removes the foreign body by injecting the drug with soluble calcium.
• After the eye is cleaned, antiseptic ointment is applied under the eyelids. Then the patient is identified in a hospital (if necessary), where the doctor appoints him further treatment. Or the expert can release the patient home, but on condition that he will come to the polyclinic to check the injured eye.

Prohibited receptions

If a person burns his eyes with welding, the following methods of so-called "treatment" will lead to nothing good:

• Rubbing. Of course, the patient at this moment feels as if he was poured sand under his eyelids. However, this feeling is caused by the inflammatory process, and not by the presence of some particles in the eyes. Therefore, friction can only complicate the situation.
• Flushing eyes with tap water. The fact is that in this case it is possible to easily infect an infection, but the proper effect will not be cleansed. Use for such manipulations can only boiled water.
• Councils of grandmothers: burying in the eyes of honey, aloe juice, tea leaves. These methods can not be used categorically, because the effect from them can be directly opposite.

Chemical eye burn: what is it?

This is getting into the body of sight of ammonia, acids, alkalis and other chemical components in the workplace or at home. Chemical burn of the eye is the most dangerous, because it leads to the fact that a person can simply remain blind. The severity of such damage is determined by temperature, chemical composition, concentration, as well as by the amount of substance that provoked the emergence of such a dangerous situation. In this burn, the patient may have such symptoms:

• Lacrimation;
• Cutting pain in the eyes;
• Fear of light;
• Loss of vision (in severe cases).

In addition to affecting the organ of vision, the skin around it also suffers. It is very important to give the person first aid in a timely manner. And how to correctly do this, read below.

First aid for chemical eye burn

• First of all, it is necessary to eliminate the irritant from the conjunctival sac. This should be done through abundant washing. To do this, use physiological saline. If it is not found at the scene, then in the extreme case, ordinary clean water will come in large quantities.
• After this, it is recommended to apply a sterile bandage to the affected area.
• Urgently call an ambulance.

Treatment of chemical burns

After the victim is brought to a medical facility, doctors begin to carry out such manipulations:

• Washing of the eye with medical fluid.
• If the burn is alkaline, the ophthalmologist prescribes to the patient ascorbic or citric acid. For mild and moderate lesions, vitamin C is prescribed for 2 g for 1 month. In severe burns - 10% solution in an artificial tear is instilled 14 times a day immediately after the injury for 2 weeks.
• When the organ of vision of the 2nd and 3rd degree is affected by the conjunctiva of the eyeball, 25-100 thousand units of penicillin, diluted in a solution of novocaine, are administered daily.
• A good effect is injected with glucose in combination with subcutaneous injection of 8-10 units of insulin.
• For prevention of secondary infection, a specialist can prescribe sulfanilamide preparations inside and antibiotics intramuscularly.
• If the chemical eye burn is severe, then a plastic surgery is indicated. During the healing period, local cortisone, a fibrin film of donor blood, is used.

What is the thermal damage to the organ of vision?

This is a damage to the tissue cornea and eyeball by interacting with agents such as fire, hot steam, heated liquids or molten substances. Thermal burn of the eye is often found both in production and in everyday life. He often goes in combination with the same damage to the face, legs, hands and whole body.

First aid for thermal damage

How to help a person at first?

• The person who volunteered to support the victim, you need to wrap your fingers with a sterile bandage and maximally open the eyelids to the patient.
• Then you should cool the organ of vision of the affected person under water for 20 minutes. The temperature of the liquid should not be more than 12-18 degrees. For cooling, use any suitable container that can create a flow of water. For example, it could be a syringe without a needle, a rubber bottle or a plastic bottle. Another way to cool the eye: put your face in a suitable container with cool water and blink occasionally.
• In the affected body it is necessary to dig in the antiseptic "Levomycetin" or "Albucid". After that, cover the eyes with a sterile cloth and give the victim a tablet of any analgesic.
• Be sure to call an ambulance.

Treatment of thermal eye burn

The therapy of this lesion is quite specific and complex, therefore it must be dealt with by specialized specialists in the ophthalmological department of the hospital. Before treating a thermal eye burn, the doctor must evaluate the area of tissue damage and the severity of the lesion.

As a rule, with this type of injury, anti-inflammatory and restorative therapy is prescribed, which helps restore damaged tissues. Surgical intervention is indicated if it is necessary to eliminate the necrotic layers of the organ of vision and in case of its restoration.

Eye burn, the treatment of which must be performed promptly, is a damage that occurs when certain factors (chemicals, high or low temperature, radiation exposure) influence the body. It is very important at the time of the defeat of the body to properly provide the first medical aid to the person, first, not to harm him even more, and secondly, to help cope with the pain before the arrival of an ambulance.