Emergency Eye Care in Port Moody

We’re all familiar with the sense of having something in our eye that isn’t supposed to be there. Often, this feeling is caused by an eyelash or a rogue speck of dust. But sometimes a foreign body or object can be much more painful or dangerous.

Do not rub the affected eye. The movement and pressure can drive the foreign body further into your eye, causing corneal abrasions.

Do not attempt to remove anything from your eye with tweezers, or any other instrument. Tools like this have much more potential to harm than to heal. Restrict eye movement and do not touch your eyes.

Instead, flush the affected eye out with an all-purpose contact solution or clean water. Even if flushing removes the object, you should still visit us to examine your eye.

Although small foreign objects, like dust or sand, may be easily flushed out without harm, larger objects can penetrate or damage eye tissue.

The retina is responsible for sending all the images you see to the brain. Despite the importance of its role, the retina really only has a tenuous hold on the optic nerve. As a result, a hard bump on the head could cause your retinas to detach. Other causes include eye disease, eye surgery, or progressive myopia.

When the retina begins to pull away or detach, the patient usually sees a sudden increase of floaters (sometimes spots or strings), accompanied by bright flashes of light and the appearance of a black curtain descending over the affected eye.

If this occurs, you must seek medical attention immediately! Retinas can be reattached, but it must be done quickly to prevent permanent vision loss.

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Since the eyes are largely comprised of mucous membranes, they are easily absorbed and compromised by chemicals. If any chemical (including common chemicals like cleaning products) makes contact with your eye, you must rinse your eyes immediately!

Rinse your eyes thoroughly using cool water from an eyewash station, a sink, or a shower. Avoid rubbing it, as this could spread the chemical within your eye.

Although you may start to feel relief after a few moments of rinsing, you must continue to rinse the affected eye for at least 15 minutes to ensure the chemical is completely gone. Once you’ve rinsed the eye, seek medical help.

Even after discomfort or irritation has decreased, the chemicals may still affect your eyes. A medical professional or eye doctor must assess your eyes to check for any lasting harm.

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