Saving Your Sight From Sports Injuries

By Kendra Bobowick

Fingernails, dirt, blades of grass, or a sturdy bang in the head could all cause eye injuries that are part of the game for those playing sports. Local professionals offer advice for handling injury this month — Sports Eye Health and Safety Month — according to Prevent Blindness America.

Eye injuries can range from mild to severe and require a time-out or a trip to the emergency room, according to David Charash, DO (Doctor of Osteopathic medicine), and coordinator of risk management and patient safety at Danbury Hospital Emergency Department.

Offering a general guideline to someone who has been hurt, he said, “Let the pain be your guide. If it persists you know to stop what you are doing and seek attention.”

Severe injuries, however, may involve lacerations or perforations or a globe rupture, he said.

“This is a serious situation,” Dr Charash said. He explained that the injured player should lie in one position until paramedics arrive.

“You could lose sight,” he said.

If the eye is struck full force producing drainage or blood, call 911, he said.

Newtown Emergency Medical Technician Nicholas Varga with the Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps said that if a person is struck in the eye, “It never hurts to flush it out. Irrigation keeps [the eye] clean.”

Offering his advice, Mr Varga said, “If a finger touches the eye, dirt and infection are possible.”

He warns that dirt, for example, could further scratch the eye if it is not cleaned out.

Covering both eyes is the best means of minimizing additional complications, he explained.

“Cover both eyes because it causes less stress,” he said. With one eye open, the injured person will involuntarily want to open both. Also, the eyes work together.

“The closed eye will still be moving if one eye is open, and that can cause more damage,” Mr Varga said.

He also warns that unnecessary movement could be especially harmful to eye muscle damage.“You don’t want it to blow out,” he said, explaining the muscle could tear or strain.

Dr Charash offered better news about eye health, noting, “Many injuries are preventable.” Protective eyewear is among his safety suggestions.

Contact lenses are neither good nor bad, in his opinion.

“You might scratch the lens and not the eye, but the lens could cause abrasions if it is pushed into the eye,” he said. He explains that doctors have no uniform response to either wearing the contact lenses or not, he said.

“Let your own doctor advise, but it’s typically convenient to keep them in,” Dr Charash said.

Eye injuries could stretch beyond damaged sight, he warns.

“Obviously if someone is hit hard in the eye, basically that’s a head injury,” Dr Charash said. “A significant blow to the eye is a significant blow to the head.” Those with the victim should check for signs of concussions — confusion, loss of consciousness, for example, are signs.

According to a release from Prevent Blindness America, an average of 40,000 Americans injure their eyes during sporting events. Similar to the information provided by Dr Charash, Prevent Blindness America also indicates that many injuries can be avoided by wearing eye protection. The organization offers information about eye protection. For a list of approved eyewear, call 800-331-2020 or visit preventblindness.org.