Sand got into a child's eyes - what to do?

A foreign body is one of the common causes of injury to various structures of the eye - the conjunctiva, sclera, and cornea.

Each of us has experienced the sensation of a foreign body in the eye more than once. Specks, grains of sand, eyelashes, fibers of fabric, getting into the shell of the eye, cause irritation and pain. Such interference, as a rule, is eliminated on its own: thanks to increased blinking, tear production and other protective reflexes of the cornea, foreign fragments are washed out of the eye.

But not every situation can be managed without the help of a specialist. When working in some industries, metal or wood shavings and chemical reagents can get into the eye, which can cause great harm to the organ of vision.

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Help with foreign body entry and removal from the eye

2 Help with foreign body entry and removal from the eye

3 Help if a foreign body gets into the eye

Ophthalmologists divide all foreign bodies into superficial and intraocular (which enter the internal parts of the eye). Depending on where the foreign object is stuck, foreign bodies of the orbit, eyeball, conjunctiva, eyelids and cornea are distinguished.

According to their composition, foreign bodies in the eye are divided into:

• non-magnetic objects (sand, earth, pebbles, wood, glass, copper, etc.);
• magnetic (pieces containing iron).

As a result of a foreign body entering the eye, the development of keratitis, uveitis, blepharitis, conjunctivitis, and in some cases glaucoma, retinal detachment, cataracts, etc. may develop. Prolonged exposure to a foreign object can lead to inflammation of the inner membranes of the eye, a purulent corneal ulcer and even blindness. Therefore, if you feel a foreign body in the eye, you should immediately seek help from an ophthalmologist.

Symptoms of the presence of a foreign body in the eye

The lining of the eyeball is very sensitive; when a speck gets into the eye, characteristic symptoms immediately appear.

However, depending on the type of damage and the nature of the foreign body, the intensity of symptoms can range from barely sensitive discomfort in the eye to severe pain.

We list the main symptoms when a foreign body gets into the eye:

• discomfort, pain and burning, sensation of a foreign body in the eye;
• redness of the cornea;
• lacrimation;
• photophobia;
• difficulty opening the eyelid;
• decreased vision;
• bleeding from the superficial ophthalmic vessels.

1 Help with foreign body entry and removal from the eye

2 Help with foreign body entry and removal from the eye

3 Help with foreign body entry and removal from the eye

Treatment

Make an appointment with an ophthalmologist, and based on your symptoms and the characteristics of your visual system, the doctor will be able to make the most accurate prescription. However, there are often situations in which it is not possible to visit a doctor for one reason or another, or the wait for an appointment is too long, in which case it is not recommended to endure discomfort in the eyes. What can be done in such a situation?

We recommend considering proven products with good reviews from consumers, without preservatives, that do not cause allergic reactions. When making your own choice, be careful and study the information about the drug in advance. Most often, for such symptoms as a feeling of sand, dryness and pain in the eyes, medications are prescribed:

Cationorm is a unique cationic emulsion for moisturizing the eyes, which restores all three layers of the tear film, permanently eliminating intense discomfort and the feeling of “sand” in the eyes that appear throughout the day, even in the morning, and prevents the further development of dry eye syndrome. Cationorm does not contain preservatives and can be used in conjunction with contact lenses.

Ocutiarz - eye drops with ultra-high molecular weight hyaluronic acid without preservatives to quickly eliminate discomfort, fatigue and foreign body sensation in the eyes, which appear at the end of the day after intense visual work. Ocutiarz is stored for 6 months after opening the bottle, it can be instilled onto contact lenses, and it is also often used to eliminate discomfort after ophthalmological operations on the cornea.

Oftagel is an eye gel with carbomer in maximum concentration that moisturizes for a long time, eliminates lacrimation, and does not require frequent instillation. It is used for such unpleasant symptoms as itching, redness, and a feeling of sand in the eyes. The advantage here is the fact that it can be used once at night, if it is not possible to instill moisturizing drops during the day.

Find the reason for this feeling

It could simply be too bright light, elevated body temperature, dry air, or any other factors. This is the simplest reason - you just need to try to remove the external irritant, and the “sand” will go away by itself.

If a similar feeling occurs after visiting the pool and contacting your eyes with chlorinated water, you should rinse your eyes from time to time during exercise. In this case, special swimming goggles help a lot - they cannot completely protect, but they greatly reduce the contact of mucous membranes with bleach. The same should be done when in contact with sea water.

In bright sunlight near water or snow, tinted glasses will help. They will also protect your eyes in strong winds.

Make lotions with herbs

Herbal cool lotions will fill your eyes with moisture and vitamins. Weak tinctures of string, calendula or chamomile are best suited. Hot lotions should not be used - if there is inflammation in the eye, high temperature will only help the infection to spread further. Using this method, you should not rub your eyes, for the same reason - there is a danger of spreading an infection. Therefore, you just need to put moistened wipes on your eyes and leave for a few minutes. This will also give your eyes the necessary rest.

After such lotions, you should make eye baths - dip your face in a cool infusion and just blink. The solution will moisturize the eyes and reduce pain.

Causes of a foreign body getting into the eye

There are many reasons for the appearance of a foreign body in the eye, the main ones are the following:

• Injuries at work can occur while working on machines for processing wood, metal, etc. If safety rules are violated and there is no special clothing or safety glasses, metal or wood shavings can fly into the eye at high speed and seriously injure it.
• Failure to comply with hygiene rules . Most often this concerns small children who like to rub their eyes with dirty hands and can thus bring foreign grains of sand or specks into their eyes.
• Incorrect wearing of contact lenses . If the rules of use are not followed, it is possible that the integrity of the contact lenses themselves may be compromised, or that various debris may enter the eye along with the lenses, which causes the sensation of a foreign body in the eye. Moreover, there is an individual intolerance to lenses, when a person constantly perceives them as a foreign body in the eye.
• Putting on and taking off woolen clothing . Carelessly pulling woolen dresses or sweaters over your head can cause lint to get into the eye lining.
• Strong gusts of wind , lifting sand and other debris from the ground that can get into the eye shell.

Causes and types of corneal damage

The cornea of ​​the eye is very thin and practically unprotected, except for the movable eyelid. It can be damaged accidentally or intentionally, as a result of an accident or failure to follow safety precautions when wearing contact lenses and glasses.

The main causes of corneal damage are divided into external and internal. External ones occur due to foreign objects, substances, thermal or wave effects entering the eye. Internal - due to congenital or acquired diseases that affect the condition of the cornea and provoke a violation of its integrity.

External causes of corneal damage are considered the most numerous and varied. They are divided into several groups depending on the type of effect on the cornea:

1. Mechanical injuries of the cornea
   . They are sharp and dull. An acute violation of integrity is characterized by the fact that a foreign object penetrates through the layers of the cornea and reaches the vitreous body and the internal structures of the eyeball. Most often this is a scratch, puncture or cut of the cornea. Blunt eye injuries are expressed by a bruise of the cornea of ​​the eye, which is not accompanied by radical dissection of the tissue.
2. Thermal damage to the cornea
   is a burn of the outer shell by a hot object, excessively heated air, or steam. In rare cases, thermal burns of the eye shell are recorded due to its contact with objects that are too cold.
3. Chemical damage
   . This cause of corneal damage is considered the second most common after mechanical trauma. It occurs when drops of acids or alkalis enter the eye.
4. Radiation injury to the cornea
   , which occurs when unprotected visual contact with excessively bright light (so-called “bunnies”), magnetic, electrical or radiation waves.

Ophthalmologists call primary infections of the eye shell another cause of external corneal damage.

Internal processes leading to the development of pathology do not have a clear classification. These include:

• disruption of metabolic processes in the body or directly in the tissues of the eye, which cause thinning of the membrane, detachment of its outer layer from the membrane;
• dry mucous membrane due to high load on the organs of vision, wearing contact lenses, allergies or the functioning of the lacrimal glands, which provokes premature accelerated wear of the outer layer of the cornea;
• autoimmune thinning of the cornea, during which protective cells attack the tissue of the stratum corneum;
• a genetic anomaly affecting the formation of collagen in the body, as a result of which the cornea loses its firmness and elasticity and becomes brittle;
• instability of intraocular pressure, which causes a loss of strength of the cornea, provokes micro-tears that can become a gateway to infections;
• age-related changes.

They all have the same nature - they cause thinning or a decrease in the protective properties of the eye membrane. Such reasons often provoke erosion, detachment or rupture of the cornea.

Unlike external causes, which appear in one eye, internal ones can affect both eyes simultaneously or sequentially.

Diagnostics

Trying to find the source of discomfort, the ophthalmologist examines the fundus, membranes of the eye, and the cavity of the upper and lower eyelids.

A slit lamp examination will help find a foreign body in the eye. For internal damage to the eye, an ophthalmoscope, x-ray or ultrasound of the eye is used.

If the grain of sand cannot be seen using a regular examination, then the ophthalmologist uses special eye drops with a dye. This helps to see the location of the speck and remove it in a timely manner.

1 Help with foreign body entry and removal from the eye

2 Help with foreign body entry and removal from the eye

3 Help with foreign body entry and removal from the eye

A child gets sand in his eyes: what to do, symptoms

Sand getting into a child's eyes is an emergency situation that requires parents to be able to react immediately. The likelihood of maintaining the quality of vision depends on the speed and competence of the medical care provided. An additional task of the person who carries out treatment and preventive measures is to ensure that the child continues to visit the ophthalmologist.

How and with what to rinse, step-by-step first aid algorithm

Children do not allow touching the disturbing area - they cry and scream. To provide full assistance, you must initially reassure the child and explain the goodwill of your intentions. Hyperactivity in children, caused by pain inside the eyes, is one of the reasons for parents’ incorrect actions.

You need to perform the actions in the following order:

1. Provide good lighting to determine the exact location of the grains of sand.
2. Help the baby take a comfortable position for washing: sitting on a chair, with the torso tilted forward. If the washing takes place above the bathtub - in a standing position.
3. Rinse eyes generously with purified, but not hot, water. For convenience, you can use a sterile syringe without a needle.
4. Using a clean napkin or handkerchief, remove as much of the foreign matter as possible.
5. Pull back the upper and lower eyelids alternately, removing accumulations of sand from under them.
6. Move sand deposits from the outer edge of the eye (closer to the temples) to the inner edge (near the bridge of the nose). Avoid performing circular movements so that the sand does not again spread under the eyelids, filling hard-to-reach places.
7. Repeat the action until upon inspection it becomes clear that all grains of sand have been eliminated. To better capture grains of sand, you need to pre-moisten a handkerchief or napkin.

It is not recommended to use dry cotton swabs or medical cotton wool - their villi get wet and remain on the mucous membrane of the eyes. This only makes the children feel worse. During the manipulation, it is contraindicated to intensively rub the napkin over the eyeball or eyelids.

What absolutely should not be done

There are several actions that can harm a child, including permanent disability, due to permanent eye damage. To avoid provoking a negative outcome:

The child should not rub his eyes (whether the child does it himself or the first aid provider). It is unacceptable to use metal or piercing objects that can potentially damage the vulnerable structures of the eye. The most commonly used are tweezers, toothpicks, cotton swabs, and sewing needles. It is not recommended to neglect contacting a specialist after signs of initial improvement in the child’s well-being. It is contraindicated to ignore the need for eye drops. Antibiotic therapy cannot be administered without a doctor's prescription.

Even if the child has a fever after removing sand from the eyes, antibiotics are not administered until examined by a specialist. It is not recommended to remove sand in the direction from the inner corner of the eye to the outer. The action will only aggravate the situation; the sandy consistency will clog the tear ducts, move deep into the eyelid and provoke complications.

Also, psychological impact on the child should not be allowed. It is strictly forbidden to shout at him or intimidate him with possible blindness and other negative consequences. The situation itself already represents stress for the baby, and it is prohibited to intensify it in a psycho-emotional way.

Removing foreign bodies from the eyes

Removal of a foreign body from the eye should only be carried out by a specialist - this will avoid complications.

Removal of foreign bodies located on the surface of the eye

Grains of sand and debris from the surface of the eye can be removed quite simply with the help of jet rinsing and a swab treated with an antiseptic.

Removal of a foreign body from the conjunctival sac

It is performed after preliminary anesthesia using a tampon. If foreign pieces have been in the eye for some time and are covered with epithelium, they are removed with tweezers or an injection needle. After the foreign body is removed from the eye, bactericidal eye drops are used.

Removing a foreign body from the cornea

Wooden, glass and metal pieces that get on the cornea can cause infiltration and then suppuration within a few hours of their presence. The diagnosis is clarified using diaphanoscopy (examination with an electric light bulb) and biomicroscopy (slit lamp). Then an anesthetic is instilled into the eye, and the foreign body is removed with special instruments.

Removing a foreign body from the eye cavity

Fortunately, foreign bodies entering the eye cavity are quite rare. Such an injury can lead to vitreous opacification, dystrophy and retinal detachment. Foreign bodies inside the eye are removed surgically. A small piece of foreign body in the eye is removed using tweezers or a magnet through an incision in the sclera or cornea.

Helpful Tips:

• To prevent foreign particles from clogging your eyes, be sure to use safety glasses when carrying out agricultural or carpentry work;
• if a foreign object gets into your eye (wood shavings, metal, pieces of glass), do not try to blink and do not rub your eyelid, this will lead to even greater injury to your organ of vision;
• Pulling out a speck on your own can contribute to the appearance of an intraocular infection or the formation of a rough scar on the eye.

Highly professional ophthalmologists at the MedicCity clinic will provide the necessary assistance if a foreign body gets into the eye. We carry out all research and treatment procedures using expert-level equipment! We know how to make your eyes healthy!

What to do if sand gets into your eyes?

The first thing you need to do is calm your baby down and explain to him that you shouldn’t rub your eyelids or blink too often. Otherwise, a grain of sand may damage the cornea. The eyes should then be examined to detect the location of the sand. But you shouldn’t take it out on the street with dirty hands, because this can lead to infection.

If a grain of sand is on the surface of the eye, then to remove it it is enough to rinse it with water. To do this, fill a cup or small bowl with water at room temperature. The ideal choice would be bottled non-carbonated liquid. It is necessary to place the container on a flat surface and immerse your face in it so that your eye is in the water. It is recommended to blink several times, which will help get rid of the sand. Typically, performing this procedure helps clear the eyeball in a few minutes. If necessary, rinsing can be done for a quarter of an hour.

In most cases, such manipulations allow you to get rid of the foreign body. But this does not mean that the danger has completely passed, because the entry of a foreign object into such a delicate organ threatens the penetration of infection with the subsequent development of inflammation. Therefore, experts recommend rinsing the eyeball with a product that has antibacterial properties as a preventive measure. For this purpose, a solution of furatsilin or special drops, for example, Tobrex, are optimal.

If parents do not have clean water on hand, then they need to make the baby cry. It is possible that the grain of sand will come out on its own along with the tears. But even after this, it is necessary to additionally rinse the eyes with an antibacterial solution.

In any case, parents should adhere to several rules:

• Do not let your baby rub his eyes or blink frequently.
• If visual inspection fails to identify the source of discomfort, then it is possible that a grain of sand has penetrated the eyeball. In this case, independent extraction is strictly prohibited, since incorrectly performed manipulations can injure the eye.
• If you cannot cope with the problem yourself, you need to apply a bandage and contact a specialist.
• After removing the sand, it is necessary to monitor the condition of the eye for 48 hours in order to respond in time to an incipient infection.

If after these manipulations the child feels relief, then there is no reason to panic and go to the clinic. Most likely, the grain of sand came out on its own and all the symptoms of a foreign body will quickly pass. If, even after all of the above, the child continues to complain of pain in the eye, there is a reason to visit the eye department of the hospital.

Sand got into a child’s eyes: what to do, how to wash it?

In the summer, many kids spend all their free time in the sandbox, but even under the constant supervision of their mother, the child can pour sand on himself or others. Agree, there is nothing wrong with this, but what to do if grains of sand get into your eye?

Almost all children in this unpleasant situation throw their toys, start screaming, crying, rubbing their eyes with their hands, so you should immediately provide first aid to the victim.

Let's figure out what you can use to wash your baby's vision organs, what medications will help avoid complications, and why it is very important to consult a doctor in a timely manner

How to wash sand out of a child's eyes?

First of all, parents are required to explain to the baby that they should not rub their eyes with dirty hands, since such actions threaten injury.

Take your child home so you can wash your hands thoroughly and have unlimited access to clean water.

When an adult manages to examine the foreign body, it is necessary to clearly determine the area of ​​its location and remove it.

Algorithm of actions:

• Rinse eyes with clean (filtered) water. The best option is to drip from a pipette, trying to direct the grains of sand to the tear duct.
• Pull back the eyelid and carefully remove the foreign object with the corner of a tissue or a cotton swab dipped in water. In some children, such manipulation causes hysterical screaming.
• If you have a fairly old child, then you can offer him to wash his eyes himself. To do this, you will need to pour bottled water into a clean, wide container. The victim lowers his face, opens his eyes under water and makes circular movements with them.

When the sand has come out, as a preventative measure, drip the eye with Levomycetin, Albucid or Floxal to prevent the addition of a bacterial infection.

What is prohibited?

Forbidden:

• Use tea leaves or herbal decoctions, since the liquid may contain microscopic particles of plants that further injure the organ of vision.
• Try to get sand with sharp, metal or dirty objects (tweezers, toothpick, used napkin, etc.).
• Ignore anti-inflammatory drops.
• Try to get out a grain of sand if it has penetrated the body of the organ.
• Leaving a child without medical care in difficult situations.
• Put psychological pressure on the baby and tell him that he will go blind.

Monitor your symptoms for several hours; if there is improvement and no complications are observed, then you can stop worrying. When the condition of the organ of vision causes concern, consult an ophthalmologist.

See a doctor urgently!

You should rush to see a specialist in the following cases:

• Parents are afraid of harming their child through their actions.
• The kid doesn't let me do anything.
• Even after the sand was removed, the victim complains of cutting and pain in the eye.
• Independent attempts were unsuccessful.
• Cloudy discharge appears from the injured eye, which leads to sticking of the eyelids.
• The eyeball became bloodshot.
• Tears containing pus, blood or mucus flow.

Only a pediatric ophthalmologist can prescribe effective therapy aimed at restoring the damaged eyeball.

Complications

Getting sand or other foreign objects into your eyes is a very dangerous situation. Since untimely assistance can lead to serious ophthalmological complications:

• Scratches of the conjunctival layer or cornea of ​​the eye.
• Development of inflammatory diseases: conjunctivitis, uveitis or blepharitis. In this case, the disease will proceed in a purulent form, since pathogenic microorganisms penetrate the eye with sand.
• A penetrating wound if the grain of sand had sharp edges.
• The most serious complication is the rapid development of myopia or complete blindness.

You must understand that if sand gets into the eyes, the health of the child’s visual organ depends on the correct actions of adults.

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