6 Signs You May Have A Corneal Injury
Did you get chemicals in your eye? Did you accidentally scratch your eye? These are ways that you can injure your cornea.
Scratching your eye is one of the most common eye injuries. Keep reading to learn about the cornea and 6 signs of a corneal injury!
What Is The Cornea?
The cornea is the clear surface on the front of the eye. It is a dome-shaped area that protects the eye.
The cornea serves as a barrier against dirt, germs, and other things that can injure your eye. Also, the cornea helps to filter out some UV light that radiates off the sun.
The cornea is very important when it comes to your vision. When light enters your eye, the dome-shaped surface helps refract it.
This helps your eye focus on objects near and far away. Injuring your cornea can impact your vision.
Signs You May Have Injured Your Cornea
Pain:
The cornea is filled with thousands of nerve endings, so you will be in pain if you scratch or rub your eye. Usually, pain means that you should not touch your eye.
If you injure your cornea, this pain could mean you damaged your cornea. Depending on the injury, it can dictate how much pain you experience.
A small scratch is usually pretty mild. Sometimes the pain is delayed, so you might not even know that you hurt your cornea.
Dry Eyes:
Dry eyes can be a symptom of a scratched cornea or a condition within itself. Injuring your cornea can delay or change your normal tears and the production of them.
Excessive Tearing:
Sometimes due to a cornea injury, you may have extra tearing. This usually is a response to an injury.
Your body produces more tears to heal the injury and keep the cornea clean and clear. Tears also help flush out particles that should not be in your eye.
Redness:
Your eye can become red from rubbing the site of the injury. When you feel like something is in your eye, it is common to rub it.
You should avoid rubbing your eyes because it can make things worse.
Blurry Vision:
After a minor injury to your cornea, you might experience blurry vision. This can also be due to excessive tearing or rubbing your injured eye.
If your blurry vision continues or worsens, it could be a sign of a more serious injury to your cornea. Reduction in your vision can mean that the inner layers of the cornea are injured.
Damage to these layers can cause vision loss, so you need to see a medical professional.
Headaches and Fatigue:
If you injure your cornea, your eyes can become sensitive to light. You can experience headaches and fatigue as a result of being sensitive to light.
Staring at screens for too long or using bright lights can cause these symptoms as well.
Usually, your cornea can heal itself after most minor injuries. Sometimes it cannot, and you should see a doctor if symptoms continue.
Concerned that you may have injured your cornea? Schedule an appointment at Ginsberg Eye in Naples, FL!
