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WHAT IS AN EYE EMERGENCY?

We are always willing to help should you ever experience an eye emergency. Our office provides emergency services for eye infections, eye injuries, and other eye emergencies. Advanced equipment allows us to examine the eye’s front surface and digitally scan inside the eye for infection or damage. We see all eye emergencies such as:

• Eye infections
• Foreign materials stuck in the eyes
• Eye trauma
• Scratched eyes
• Sudden loss of vision in one or both eyes
• Lost or broken contact lenses or eyeglasses
• Flashes of light in the vision
• “Floaters” in the vision
• Red or painful eyes
• Dislodged contact lenses
• Uncomfortable, itchy, or irritated eyes

Eye emergencies do not always require going to the emergency room. These range from foreign bodies and severe eye allergies to eye infections as the most common ER visits. When you have the above symptoms, we know the importance of eye care. These signs indicate a need for immediate examination or consultation. If you have any type of eye emergency, please call us to schedule.

RED, Pink Or Sore Eyes?

We are ready to look after ALL of your eye care needs in ONE location. In addition to the services you already rely on us for such as routine eye exams, contact lenses, frames, and eyeglasses – think of your Optometrist first for any of the following:

• sore, red, or itchy eyes
• treatment of “pink eye” and other bacterial infections
• removal of foreign bodies from the eye (such as wood or metal)
• treatment of eye allergies or burns
• emergency eye care
• post-surgical follow-up

This is convenient and cost-effective for you and your whole family. You can be sure you are receiving the attention of an eye care specialist.

Foreign Body

A foreign body is something such as an eyelash, sawdust, sand, metal, or dirt can that gets into the eyes. This can cause pain and irritation depending on what it is and how the injury happened. The foreign body may pierce the eye and cause serious injury or it may simply go away with no long-term problem. If not removed, a foreign body can cause infection. If anything is stuck in your eye for more than a period of a couple of hours, you must immediately cease all attempts to remove it yourself. Keep in mind that the eyes are an extremely delicate organ and any attempts to try anything extraordinary with them can only have negative and adverse results. If the foreign body you are talking about is not bothering you too much, then you are advised to visit an eye doctor to take care of it. 

How Can An Eye Doctor Help?

If there is a foreign body in your eye, such as a piece of grit, your optometrist may try to remove it. Anesthetic eye drops will be used in your eye first, in order to numb and prevent any pain. If the foreign body is easy to get to, it may be possible to remove it by simply rinsing your eye with water, or by wiping it away with a cotton wool bud or triangle of card. However, if this is unsuccessful, your eye doctor may try to remove the foreign body by lifting it out with the tip of a small metal instrument. The foreign body could be stuck underneath your upper eyelid, especially if you have scratches or grazes (abrasions) on the top half of the transparent outer layer of your eye (cornea). If this is the case, it may be necessary to gently turn your eyelid inside out in order to remove the foreign body. Doing nothing can lead to loss of vision, premature cataracts and damage to the retina so do not take any chances, delay is dangerous.