How to deal with eye burns

Unexpected things are bound to happen in life, and such changes may bring lifelong pain to people. We always emphasize protecting our eyes, but sometimes the consequences are unexpected. Sometimes I don’t pay attention when cooking and get burned accidentally. It happened to burn my eyes, which was very painful. As long as the cornea is not burned, everything can still be saved. Be proactive in doing your best to avoid any sequelae.

We often encounter some accidents in life in the emergency room, such as oil splashing into the eyes when cooking or burning the eyes when eating hot pot. Most people can recover well, but occasionally if they don't pay attention the condition may worsen, seriously affecting their eyesight and leaving them with lifelong regrets.

When eyes are burned, where exactly is the injury?

The eyes have their own protective mechanism, which is blinking. Normally, we would instinctively close our eyes to protect them, but sometimes the accident happens so suddenly that it is too late.

If the burn is only on the eyelid skin, it generally will not affect vision; when the burn affects the cornea, the prognosis is determined based on the degree of corneal injury.

What is the cornea?

The cornea is located at the front of the eyeball and is in direct contact with the outside world, so it is particularly vulnerable to damage;

It also has no blood vessels and a relatively weak ability to resist infection. Once an infection occurs, it is likely to leave scars after healing.

The cornea is the main component of the refractive medium and needs to be completely transparent and have correct refractive properties in order for the eyes to see clearly.

How to determine the prognosis of corneal injury?

The normal cornea is divided into five layers, including the epithelial cell layer, the anterior Descemet's layer, the stroma, the posterior Descemet's layer and the endothelial cell layer.

Corneal epithelial cells have the ability to repair themselves, and if the damage is limited to the epithelial layer, they can generally recover completely.

When the injury involves the Descemet's membrane and parenchyma, it generally leads to scarring after healing. If the damage affects the endothelial cell layer, the cornea will develop edema and decompensation due to the destruction of the corneal-aqueous humor barrier function of the endothelial layer.

The size and thickness of corneal scars vary depending on the severity of the lesion. A thin and shallow scar is called a corneal cloudiness, a slightly thicker one is called a corneal macula, and a thick and dense scar is called a corneal leukoplakia. The effect on vision varies depending on the type and location of the scar.

What should I do after being injured?

First, roughly judge the extent of the injury and whether it affects the cornea.

Because the cornea is rich in sensory nerves, if it is injured, the patient will generally feel pain, photophobia, tearing and other discomforts.

First try to see if you can open your eyes. If there is no particular discomfort, you can observe it yourself;

If the above symptoms occur, go to an ophthalmologist immediately. Remember not to rub your eyes at this time to avoid making the injury worse.

Secondly, rinse the injured surface according to the situation.

If only the eyelid skin is burned, you can close your eyes and rinse with clean water to lower the temperature of the burned skin and reduce further damage after the burn, and then decide whether to seek medical attention based on the situation.

If the burn affects the eyes but very little fluid has entered the eyes, such as just a drop of oil, it is not recommended to rinse the eyes.

Avoid improper operation, which may cause unnecessary infection and further damage. Just seek medical attention.

Of course, if a large amount of liquid enters the eyes, you should immediately rinse them with plenty of clean water and then seek emergency medical treatment.