It’s “eye-catching”, what should I do?

Let me tell you a painful thing: when eating hot pot, the oil splashed on the newly bought clothes. Let me tell you another thing that makes people feel even more painful: the hot pot oil not only splashed on the clothes, but also splashed into the eyes! At this time, no matter how delicious the hot pot is, I believe you will lose your appetite and burst into tears. When many people face this situation, their first reaction is to rub their eyes, but they don’t know that rubbing their eyes is a painful and extremely wrong behavior. If you are not careful, it will cause irreversible damage to your eyes. So, in this case, how should we deal with it?

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#1 Rubbing your eyes is totally wrong!

The outer membrane of the eyeball is divided into the cornea and sclera. The sclera and cornea are rich in nerve endings and are very sensitive to stimulation. For this reason, we need to protect our eyes better (just as pain is a signal to remind people of danger). Hot pot soup contains a lot of spices and peppers, and the temperature is very high. Once it enters the eyes, it will cause strong stimulation to the cornea and sclera. If you rub your eyes at this time, it will only make the stimulation stronger, and it is likely to cause conjunctival corneal damage. At the same time, there may be obvious inflammatory irritation symptoms such as redness, swelling, and pain. Therefore, you must not rub your eyes.

So how do you wash off the chili oil without rubbing your eyes? Don't forget the body's self-protection mechanism. Due to irritation, the eyes will reflexively secrete a large amount of tears, trying to wash away the irritant with tears.

So is this mechanism useful? The answer is yes. If only a small amount of chili oil is splashed, it will not cause a big impact on the eyes. Just shed tears and no special treatment is needed, and it may recover as before. However, if a large amount enters the eyes and the tears secreted are not enough, external force is needed to help, such as rinsing with clean water for more than ten minutes. If conditions do not permit, tap water or eye drops can be used as an emergency measure. After rinsing, it is best to go to the ophthalmology department of the hospital for a more thorough rinse to prevent foreign matter from remaining. At the same time, the doctor may prescribe some eye drops to avoid infection. Just use them as directed by the doctor. If there are still obvious symptoms of redness, swelling, pain, and other discomfort in the eyes later, remember to go to the hospital for a more comprehensive examination and treatment.

#2What should I do if a foreign object enters my eye?

In daily life, our eyes are in direct contact with the outside world, and the dangers they face are far more than just chili oil. When walking on the road or riding a bicycle, small flies and dust may enter. When doing certain work, there may be threats from solids such as iron filings, wood chips, and glass, and there may also be direct harm from liquids such as acids and alkalis. So how should we deal with these situations? Are eye drops, blowing, etc. still useful at this time?

Stage 1: If it is simply "sand in the eyes", the treatment method is relatively simple: you can ask someone around you to pinch the upper eyelid with your fingers, lift it lightly, and blow air into the eye to stimulate tears to flush out the sand and dust. Look carefully, it is not to blow out the sand and dust directly, but to stimulate the secretion of tears by blowing air to flush out the sand and dust. In this case, remember not to rub your eyes with your hands. The action of rubbing with your hands will cause friction between foreign objects and the cornea, damaging the cornea. In addition, there are many bacteria on the hands, which may enter the eyes through the action of rubbing the eyes, causing unnecessary infection.

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If the foreign body sensation in the eye does not improve after blowing air, you can try flushing with eye drops or clean water. During the flushing process, you should open the eyelids and keep the eyeball moving to ensure that the foreign body is completely flushed away.

Second stage: If foreign objects such as insects or eyelashes that can be seen with the naked eye enter the eye: First close your eyes and try not to move them. Then you can try to remove them by yourself in front of a mirror or by asking someone around you to help you use a clean cotton swab to gently dip it in. If you cannot remove it, you can go to the hospital to have it removed with the help of a professional doctor.

It is worth mentioning that sharp foreign objects such as iron filings and glass may be embedded directly on the surface of the eyeball. In this case, it is not recommended to operate on your own. Immediate medical treatment is the correct choice. The eyes are very fragile. If you use a hard cotton swab to vigorously remove foreign objects at home, it is likely to damage the eye tissue, which will bring certain difficulties to subsequent treatment and recovery.

Stage 3: If an acid or alkali (liquid or soluble dust) enters the eyes, rinse immediately with clean water nearby for a long time, rather than waiting to go to the hospital for treatment. Because chemicals staying in the eyes for too long will seriously corrode eye tissues and even cause blindness. In addition to emergency treatment, you should also seek medical attention in a timely manner. Remember to inform the doctor of the type of acid (alkali), and conduct relevant examinations and treatments to minimize the damage. In this case, the damage is often more serious, so people engaged in related work should wear goggles to protect their eyes and prevent it before it happens.

Finally, I want to say to everyone: Don't rub your eyes randomly, and seek medical attention immediately if you have any problems. Please take care of your eyes, after all, you will use them for a lifetime.

Source: Chongqing Science and Technology Museum

Author: Wu Bucai, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University

Review experts: Huang He, Li Chunli, Chen Tao, Xu Xiaoping

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