Eye injuries are not only painful, but can also have long-lasting damages. Take every precaution with your child!
When children actively participate in sports, recreational activities, crafts, or otherwise physically-active play, eye-related injuries are much more likely. More than 90 percent of all eye injuries can be prevented with protective eye wear, however, there are many ways you can work to actively prevent eye injuries from occurring in the first place. In this week’s blog we’ll explore these. Follow our 3 tips for preventing eye injuries and keep your children’s’ vision safe from harm this summer. Let’s begin.
Keep Your Home Safe
Believe it or not, not everything indoors is safe. With harmful cleaning products, a multitude of foreign objects, and hazardous toys, painful, irreversible eye damage is always a risk. In order to eye-injury proof your home you’ll need to keep all chemicals and sprays out of the reach of small children. Products, such as Drano, can cause complete blindness if handled improperly. In recent years, laundry detergent “pods” have been the cause of many chemical eye injuries in children who get a hold of them and have them “explode” in their hands. You should also actively assist your child when handling common items such as paper clips, pencils, scissors, bungee cords, wire coat hangers and rubber bands. All of these could potentially cause serious eye damage if used incorrectly. Purchasing age appropriate toys is extremely important as well, not only because of choking hazards, but also not knowing how to operate a toy correctly could result in eye injury. By making sure your home is safe, you’ll avoid serious accidents that could result in a loss of vision. It’s in your best interest to do so.
2. Keep Children Away From Dangerous Objects
“You’ll shoot your eye out!” is a common phrase we are all too familiar with! It is a well-delivered warning! You shouldn’t allow children to play with non-powder rifles, pellet guns, or BB guns. They’re extremely dangerous and have actually been reclassified as firearms and removed from toy departments. You also shouldn’t let your children anywhere near fireworks, specifically bottle rockets. They’ve actually been banned in several states because of the risk of eye injury. Even toy guns that fire seemingly “soft” foam pellets can cause serious injury if shot directly at and eye in close enough range.
3. Be Careful While Outdoors
Sticks, stones, thorns, insect bites, and poison ivy are all some of the many causes for eye injuries that we see in our office. Being aware of your surroundings and ideally wearing eye protection are the best ways to avoid a problem. Another cause of eye injury can be from an animal bite or scratch. There have been many cases in which unsupervised small children get bitten by dogs, and eye injuries are a direct result of the trauma associated with the attack. The dog is usually one the child is familiar with such as their friend’s dog, or even the friendly canine that lives in their home. Any dog that bites a child should be removed from the household. If it was a neighbor’s dog, you’ll need to actively work to keep your children away from their property. Any dog bite should be seen immediately by an emergency room doctor or your primary doctor, and if it involves any area near the eye, by an ophthalmologist. On car trips, loose items need to be placed in the trunk or otherwise secured so they don’t become dangerous projectiles during a collision or a short stop. Follow these tips and your children’s eye health will stay healthy and pristine!
If An Eye Injury Occurs Call Pediatric Eye Care of MD After Seeking Immediate Medical Attention
Pediatric Eye Care of Maryland takes you and your child’s eye health very seriously. With a full staff of highly skilled Ophthalmologists, Optometrists, Orthoptists, and Opticians we’ve got ocular health covered. If you feel any concern about your vision, have questions concerning eye health, or need information on the services we offer contact us today. With 4 convenient locations in Maryland, we are your number one choice for eye treatment.
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