Month: October 2022

The Vital Facts

• Injuring the eye is a primary reason for partial blindness in a single eye.
• Falls, assaults, and transportation incidents are the primary causes of eye-related hospitalisations.
• Eye injuries are more prevalent in males, especially among working-age individuals.

Just thinking about an eye injury is enough to make most people squeamish. Whether it’s putting in a contact lens or fishing out a stubborn eyelash, touching our eyes is often an uncomfortable experience.

Despite your feelings about them, knowing how to provide first aid for eye injuries is essential. Like any injury, there is a correct process to follow, and knowing it is the best way to prevent losing your eye or your vision in an emergency.

Read the following guide to learn how to provide first aid for eye injuries.

Here’s a summary of what you’ll find in this guide:

• What is considered an eye injury?
• What isn’t considered an eye injury?
• Eye injuries resulting from chemical burns
• Eye injuries resulting from small foreign objects
• Eye injuries resulting from large foreign objects
• Eye injuries resulting from lacerations or punctures
• Eye injuries resulting from impacts

What is Considered an Eye Injury?

For this guide, eye injuries are caused by sudden traumas from an outside source, whether that be a chemical burn, an object, or an impact. Treatment of eye injuries focuses more on mitigation and pain relief than on diagnosis. 

What isn’t Considered an Eye Injury?

There are some things that can cause eye irritation or pain that aren’t classed as injuries for the purposes of first aid. 

For example, eye irritation from allergies, bacterial or viral infections like conjunctivitis, or dry eyes are not emergency situations. Simply visit a pharmacist or your GP for a diagnosis and treatment.

Eye Injuries Resulting from Chemical Burns

One of the most common eye injuries in a household is chemical burns. Many cleaning products can irritate or outright damage your eye. Some of the most common, and worst, are:

• Drain cleaner
• Bleach
• Oven cleaner
• Polishes
• Paint thinners

While the worst injuries are a result of direct splashing to the eye, people often mistakenly rub their eyes with hands that still have traces of chemicals, which can also cause injury.

How to Treat a Chemical Burn Eye Injury

Here are the steps to for providing first aid to a chemical burn eye injury:

1. Keep the affected eye open. While your instinct will be to close it to stop the pain, this can trap chemicals and push them further into or around the eye. If you are wearing contact lenses, remove them immediately.
2. Flush the eye under cool water for at least 15-20 minutes. As with regular burn injuries, make sure the water is not ice cold. If it is difficult to target the eye, run water over your face while holding the eye open. 
3. Immediately seek medical assistance or advice. Do not attempt to drive yourself if your vision or ability to keep your eyes open is impacted. Also, take mental notes about what the chemical was, how much entered your eye and how long it has been since the injury occured. All these details will help medical professionals treat you.

Important Note

It can be very difficult to assess the severity of chemical burns. Just because a burn isn’t very painful (alkaline burns often aren’t) doesn’t mean it isn’t serious. Many complications can occur after the fact and receiving qualified advice or an eye examination is the best way to ensure you don’t sustain unnecessary damage.

Eye Injuries Resulting from Small Foreign Objects

Small foreign objects are another extremely common eye injury cause. For kids playing outside during summer or adults who enjoy camping in the great outdoors, things like sand, dirt, and plant matter can easily find their way into our eyes.

These small foreign objects can usually be easily wiped out, or make their way out on their own. However, sometimes they can become lodged and cause irritation and pain. 

How to Treat Eye Injuries Resulting from Small Foreign Objects

Here are the steps for providing first aid to a small foreign object eye injury:

1. Try to let your eye naturally flush it out. Blink and roll your eyes to see if that loosens or removes the particle. Your eye may tear up, which is its natural way of flushing out particles. Do not rub your eye, as this can push the particle further into the surface of your eye, making it more difficult to remove.
2. If your eye can’t flush it out naturally, use saline solution or cool water to manually flush your eye.
3. If this doesn’t work, see your doctor. They’ll be able to attempt to remove it, or they’ll be able to refer you to a specialist.

Important Note

If you suspect the foreign object is a human-made material, such as plastic, metal, paint or glass, seek out medical attention immediately. These materials are more coarse and won’t naturally break down or loosen over time. They may actually become more embedded and can contaminate your eye. 

Eye Injuries Resulting from Large Foreign Objects

If a large foreign object becomes embedded in your eye, this is much more serious and requires immediate action. These injuries often occur when children accidentally have sticks lodged in their eyes while playing, or when people on a worksite are injured by nails or bolts.

How to Treat Eye Injuries Resulting from Large Foreign Objects

Here are the steps for providing first aid for small foreign object eye injury:

1. Do not remove the object! Removing a large embedded object can cause severe damage. 
2. Call an ambulance immediately. If you are the one who has suffered the injury, do not drive yourself to the hospital. 
3. If the object is small enough that the eye can still close, cover both eyes with sterile dressings. If the object protrudes through the eyelids, tape a sterile paper cup or similar object over the injured eye, and then cover the other eye with a sterile dressing. It is important to cover both eyes because you want to limit the affected person’s eye movement, and leaving one eye uncovered may tempt them to look around, which will cause both eyes to move.
4. Advise the affected person to limit their eye movement as much as possible. 

Important Note

Due to how confronting a large foreign object being embedded in the eye can be, it is very important to keep the injured person calm. They may want to remove the object, or try to resist having both eyes covered. Keeping them immobile and as relaxed as possible is essential.

It’s also important to be aware of signs the sufferer is going into shock. In an embedded eye injury, the cause of the injury continues to affect the sufferer, so they can go into shock even after the initial penetration. 

Eye Injuries Resulting from Lacerations or Punctures

This is another common eye injury that requires first aid. In these cases, the eye is lacerated or punctured by an object, but the object doesn’t stay lodged in the eye. These can range from a small scratch with a fingernail to a deep cut caused by a sharp object. 

Depending on the severity of the injury, you may need to provide first aid differently. Where the eye has been lacerated or punctured can also be a factor. 

How to Treat Eye Injuries Resulting from Lacerations or Punctures

Here are the steps for providing first aid for a laceration or puncture eye injury:

1. If the wound is very minor, you can simply observe ongoing symptoms and visit a GP for advice.
2. If the wound is more severe, you should seek medical advice immediately. Infection risks are far more serious in the eye than on other areas of the body where cuts or punctures can occur. 
3. Do not rub or rinse the eye. Simply cover it with a sterile dressing and limit movement of the eye. 
4. Resist the urge to take any aspirin, ibuprofen or other anti-inflammatory medication as these thin the blood and can worsen bleeding.

Eye Injuries Resulting from Impacts

Impacts to the eye are extremely common in sport and as a consequence of fighting. However, while most people think of a black eye or a few burst blood vessels, impact eye injuries can be much more serious.

The first problem is that head injuries can often lead to concussions, which can impair vision. This means serious eye damage will not be initially recognised because it is assumed to be a symptom of the concussion. 

The second problem is that other than keeping the eye immobilised, serious eye injuries can’t be treated at home. If you suspect any of the following symptoms, seek emergency care.

Symptoms of a Serious Impact Eye Injury

Symptoms of a serious impact eye injury can present in many different ways:

• Double, blurred, partial or otherwise changed vision
• Sensitivity to light
• Limited ability to move the eye in different directions
• Painful eye movement
• Severe pain in the eyeball
• Numbness around the eye
• A change in pupil size or shape, or pupils of different sizes
• Excessive blood collecting in the white (sclera) section of the eye
• Blood in the coloured (iris) section of the eye.
• Feeling like there is something in your eye
• Deformity of the eye socket bone that isn’t caused by swelling alone.
• Abnormal upper eyelid movement

Any of these symptoms can be a sign of more severe injury.

Have You Considered a First Aid Course?

Of all the emergency situations you can encounter, needing to provide first aid for eye injuries can be one of the most stressful. The sufferers of the injury are often conscious and in distress, and fear of causing permanent vision loss by making a mistake can often cloud your judgement.

The best way to take the stress out of providing first aid is by taking a first aid course. 

Vital First Aid provides realistic training that will keep you calm and confident about your knowledge when faced with a stressful situation, such as an eye injury. 

To find out more about our courses, visit our website. Or, if you are ready to sign up for a course, get in touch today. 

Shock can often take people by surprise. Unlike the injury or event that causes shock, its symptoms often appear gradually over time, and can turn an apparently minor injury into a life-threatening one. 

While you may know how to apply first aid to the injuries that cause shock, making sure you can treat the shock itself is a vital skill. Read on to learn first aid for shock. 

Here’s a summary of what you’ll find below:

• What is Shock?
• Is Shock Life-Threatening?
• Symptoms of Shock
• How to Provide First Aid for Shock
• Feel Confident with First Aid Training

What is Shock?

There are two main things you need to know about shock. 

First, when referred to in a medical context, it isn’t an emotional condition. If you see something that is shocking, and react emotionally, that isn’t the same as going into shock, which is suffering from a physical condition called shock.

Second, shock isn’t a condition that appears on its own. It is a response to a causal event, such as:

• Trauma
• An allergic reaction
• An animal bite
• Burns
• Infection
• Heatstroke

When these injuries occur, they can trigger a defence mechanism in your body. Fearing blood loss, your body will constrict its blood vessels to drop your blood pressure. This conserves it for your vital organs, which need blood flow to receive the oxygen that keeps them functioning – and keeps you alive. 

If you are actually suffering from extreme blood loss, constriction can be helpful. The problem is, your body can overreact and go into shock even when an injury isn’t life-threatening. 

The problem is, the initial injury often occupies the first aid responder’s attention. Then, after it is treated, a person can develop associated shock symptoms without anyone realising until it becomes serious. 

Is Shock Life-Threatening?

Shock can be life-threatening, and can also cause far more severe damage to a person than the initial injury that caused it.

The problem with dropping blood pressure is that in order to protect the heart and brain, the body will starve less vital organs of blood and oxygen.

If enough time passes, organs can fail or suffer irreparable damage, and eventually multiple organ failure can lead to death. That’s why understanding how to apply first aid to shock patients needs to be a critical part of your first aid skill set. 

Symptoms of Shock

Symptoms of shock can appear gradually over time, and don’t always appear sequentially. It also isn’t uncommon for some symptoms to appear while others don’t appear at all. 

The symptoms of shock are as follows:

• Blue lips and fingernails
• Cold, clammy skin with a pale colour
• Enlarged pupils
• Weakness or fatigue
• Nausea or vomiting
• Dizziness, fainting, or difficulty walking 
• Rapid breathing
• Rapid pulse
• Changes in behaviour or temperament, such as anxiousness or agitation
• Unconsciousness
• Lack of vital signs

If any of these symptoms occur, you should take measures to provide first aid for shock and call an ambulance. 

How to Provide First Aid for Shock

Treating shock has two components, treating the precursor injury, and then treating the shock itself. 

1. Call an Ambulance

The thing you should do if you believe someone is in life-threatening danger is call an ambulance. It’s better to call one and have it not be needed, than not call one and risk a preventable death. 

2. Lay the Person Down

Once you’ve called an ambulance, your first priority should be laying the person suffering from shock down. Make sure they are on their back, unless they are vomiting. In that case, turn them on their side. 

Once they are laying down and are comfortable, try to  elevate their legs so that they are above their heart. This will encourage blood flow back towards the torso. Obviously, if their legs or hips are injured, don’t complete this step. 

3. Follow the DRSABCD Steps

DRSABCD is a CPR method that takes you through the steps required to check a person’s vitals and attempt to resuscitate them. If a person isn’t breathing, or has no pulse, CPR needs to take priority over any other treatment concerns. 

4. Treat Initial Injuries

If you are satisfied that the shock sufferer is stable, treat the injury that is causing the shock response. While shock may continue after the injury has been treated, you can be sure that the injury isn’t prolonging the shock response. 

Below you can read our guides on providing first aid for several common causes of shock. 

• First aid for head injuries
• First aid for burns
• First aid for snake bites
• First aid for bee stings
• First aid for spider bites

If you aren’t able to stop blood loss with a dressing, continue to apply pressure on the wound until the ambulance arrives. 

Remember, for anaphylactic shock that is caused by a bite or sting, the person may have an epipen that you can use to help them. 

5. Loosen Clothing

The reason a shock patient’s blood pressure drops is because of blood vessel constriction, so you want to loosen or remove any tight clothes that could be making it difficult for blood to pump through the body. 

Also consider the emotional distress of the person. When people go into shock they often panic, and the lack of oxygen in their bodies causes them to breathe more frantically. Wearing tight clothes can begin to feel claustrophobic. 

6. Maintain Warmth 

Blood isn’t just necessary for transporting oxygen around the body, it is also important for regulating temperature. Blood is warm, and as it travels it keeps important organs insulated. 

When you get cold, you shiver. This is your body forcing you to make little movements that burn energy, which creates warmths and stimulates blood flow. The problem is, shivering depletes oxygen too, and can worsen the effects of shock. 

If the person appears to be suffering from symptoms of cold or early hypothermia, make sure to cover them with something loose fitting, like a coat or a blanket. While they will likely complain about feeling cold in their extremities, like their hands and feet, you need to focus on warming their torso first.

7. Continue to Monitor Vitals and Provide Reassurance

If you’ve followed all of these first aid steps for shock, your shock patient should be stable, comfortable and warm. While they may still be suffering from shock, you have treated the causes of shock, so they should improve with time. 

While you wait for the ambulance to arrive, continue to monitor their vitals, including breathing and pulse. If there are any significant changes, keep a note of them so you can tell the paramedics. If their vitals stop, commence CPR immediately. 

It’s also essential that you do your best to keep the person calm. Panic responses, like erratic movement, frantic breathing and shaking all waste oxygen, so you want to limit these tendencies and keep them as still as possible. 

Do Not Give Food or Drink

Do not give a shock patient food or drink. As their symptoms improve they may ask for something, but need to be firm and say no.

When the body is suffering from shock, many of its usual functions stop working properly, including eating and drinking. Any food or drink is likely to be vomited by the shock sufferer – even if they think they are feeling better. 

Vomiting can lead to choking if they have a spinal injury and can’t be turned on their side. It also increases their sense of panic.

Feel Confident with First Aid Training

Shock is scary because it can happen after many common injuries, but a lot of people don’t know how to recognise it, or deal with it effectively. 

If you want to learn how to provide first aid for shock, you should consider a first aid training course.

Vital First Aid provides realistic training that will keep you calm and confident about your knowledge when faced with a stressful situation, such as the onset of shock. 

To find out more about our courses, visit our website. Or, if you are ready to sign up for a course and make sure you know how to deal with shock, get in touch today.