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Around the house
-- Woman putting on makeup, pokes her
eye with eyeliner or mascara. Secondary issue is eye
infections from old makeup.
-- Fingernail scratches while putting
on makeup or playing with grandchildren. Although a
scratch on the cornea is serious, the secondary
infection from dirty fingernails is a greater
concern.
-- Curling irons cause thermal burns.
-- Catching the cornea with the edge
of a grocery paper sack.
-- Airbags in the car can perforate a
cornea.
Cleaning products:
-- Drain cleaner contains sodium
hydroxide, which is more caustic and damaging than
an acidic burn, such as from bleach. The caustic
burn destroys the tissue that allows the eye to
regenerate on the outside of the cornea. ALWAYS
flush the eye with water (even with a garden hose)
for a minimum of 15 minutes.
Outdoors:
-- Weed eaters and mowers, home-shop
grinding wheels; Bungee cords or rubber hoses
flinging back into the eye.
-- Fishing. Pulling back on hook
caught under a rock and the hook flies into your eye
or another’s, or fly-fishing sometimes causes the
same type of accident.
-- Jump starting a car and the
battery blows up in the face.
-- Sports, such as soccer, baseball
and tennis; indoor racquetball; while hiking, a tree
branch scratches the eye; motorcyclists at the
minimum should wear sunglasses. A large insect can
hit the eye and cause not only loss of vision, but
secondary eye infections. The very best eye care is
to wear a helmet.
Other:
-- Those who have had a radial
keratotomy (RK) procedure several years ago should
beware old scars from that procedure can reopen with
a mild bump. Wear eye protection anytime outdoors.
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