Expert advice on how to protect eyes during Tet

Eye injuries requiring hospitalization during the Tet holiday often increase dramatically and vision after treatment often declines to some extent.

Another new year is coming. The medical sector is busy preparing for the New Year for staff and patients still in the hospital, the shifts and emergency teams are ready to do their duty. I am sure that my day on duty will not be fun, if not tiring and terrifying, during the New Year holidays.

Anyone who is a doctor, especially a trauma doctor, is all too familiar with bloody accidents, sunken eyes filled with blood, patients in pain and pale faces constantly trembling and asking “can you save them, doctor?” Their families and relatives are outside in droves. Everyone is worried, rich in both eyes, poor in both hands. The responsibility weighs heavily on us professionals, as well as stress and conflict.

Illustration photo.

After the treatment of eye trauma patients, the vision is often damaged to some extent, if not disappointing. Because the eye has a volume of only 4cm3, the optical nerve structure is very delicate. Even a slight injury can cause displacement or damage to its internal structure. The possibility of infection is extremely high, and the tissues are largely unable to regenerate like other soft tissues... So, eye trauma should not occur.

It is good to know that Americans report that 90% of eye accidents can be prevented, 50% are simply due to wearing glasses when in sensitive conditions for the eyes. So do we have many advantages to deal with eye accidents well? But in reality, no, in the US, every day there are still 1,000 people hospitalized for eye accidents, in our country it is probably about the same because although the population is smaller than theirs, the recklessness and carelessness are much greater than the Americans. After all, accidents always have a predestined element, due to circumstances: a gust of wind carrying sand and dust, a tree branch suddenly breaking and falling, landslides... no one can avoid those things.

Always accompanied by destiny is human destiny, which is our living environment, the way we arrange our lives, the carelessness and haste of people... also cause trouble for ourselves.

47% of eye accidents occur in the 18-45 age group, the working age, 25% of eye injuries occur in children. Thus, eye accidents affect the young population and future citizens. Preventing eye accidents requires the participation of the whole society, preventive measures must be regular and widespread. We will discuss prevention right after this.

Accidents happen anytime, anywhere. However, at home the most (47%), while playing sports (15%), at work (16%), traffic accidents (12%), and in other circumstances (14%).

1. Accidents at home and in daily life:As Tet approaches, people are increasingly overwhelmed with cleaning, decorating, and cooking. Adults are the same, while children are off school and have fun. These two factors combined make the rate of home accidents skyrocket during the holidays: tree branches poking the eyes, hot grease splashing into the eyes, collisions or sharp objects poking the eyes while playing...

Wearing safety glasses when doing work that could be dangerous to the eyes is the main precaution, not the dexterity. Housewives, imagine how useful they will be when you have to clean the bathroom and kitchen with highly acidic or caustic cleaning solutions, when we take things from the microwave or oven, or when we are cooking in a pan with grease.

Opening champagne bottles, beer bottles, and cans has also caused many accidents in recent years. Men should be careful when performing these operations.

What about children?

If adults are negligent and do not pay attention, children are at risk of accidents. That is why happy days suddenly turn into sad days. Giving instructions, creating a safe play space for children, and supervising are not enough. Sometimes disasters are the gifts or toys we give to children.

During the 2010 Lunar New Year, the Central Eye Hospital treated dozens of accidents caused by pellet guns, fireworks, and rockets originating from China. It is true that during the holidays it is difficult to refuse children's requests for toys, but we should know how to refuse for their safety.

Ophthalmologists advise parents to carefully read toy labels to ensure that they are age and developmentally appropriate. Avoid toys with sharp, protruding or projectile parts. Always supervise children when they are playing with toys or games that pose a risk of injury.

Accidents when doing minor repairs or decorating in the house are not uncommon and are often very serious. Wear safety glasses and be careful when drilling into walls, when hammering, when using grinders, polishers, saws, etc. because these activities often cause metal fragments to fly out and penetrate the eyes. Do not let children hang around to watch adults work. Adults themselves should wear glasses or, better yet, a plastic face shield when doing work that can be harmful to the eyes.

For many Vietnamese, peach blossoms, kumquat trees, and other ornamental plants are the spirit of Tet. However, hidden within them are dangers: flashing lights and other decorations. The peach branches can be dangerous to the eyes. Therefore, you must be very careful when approaching or moving ornamental plants in your home. Glass ornaments should be hung out of reach of children to avoid unfortunate accidents.

2. Playing sports, traveling, picnicking:Tet is a long holiday. Many people choose sports or travel, picnics as hobbies.

Sports eye injuries are a common cause of permanent blindness because of the high impact involved in sports. There are approximately 40,000 sports-related eye injuries in the United States each year. Failure to properly protect your eyes while participating in sports such as basketball, soccer, water sports, and racquet sports can result in serious eye injuries.

The amateur badminton movement in offices, schools, and neighborhoods is growing. Eye accidents are also increasing accordingly.

Your eye doctor and you should be proactive in using appropriate eye protection for each sport.

When traveling far away, we should prepare a first aid kit. It should contain a bottle of 0.9% eye wash saline, some cotton and antiseptic so that we can wash and bandage our eyes when needed.

3. Traffic participation:The sudden increase in traffic frequency, alcohol, haste and lack of observation are the causes of countless eye accidents. Countries with a large number of cars have significantly reduced car accidents due to the education of the people, brake technology and airbags.

Car accidents in developed countries now account for only 5% of eye accidents. In our country, it is... horrifying, most of them are motorcycle accidents, both with and without helmets. The interaction of too much force in motorcycle accidents is the unfortunate cause of blindness in many young patients.

There is no other way, when the traffic infrastructure is still weak, is the awareness of traffic participants. Some people are easily shocked even when drinking alcohol or not, reckless and disregard the law... It is scary if these people participate in traffic. So let's warn ourselves: if you drink too much, don't drive and be careful on the road.

If an accident happens, do not rush or act rashly. We should remember the following principles when giving first aid to ourselves and our loved ones if we unfortunately have an eye accident:

- Do not press hard or rub the wound on the eye.

- Do not try to remove foreign objects from your eyes yourself.

- If liquid gets into your eyes and causes burns, rinse your eyes under running water for about 15 minutes.

- Do not put eye drops or ointment in your eyes yourself.

- For bleeding wounds, only cover with a bandage. For swollen and bruised wounds, ice or cold water can be applied.

- If dust gets in your eyes, dip your eyes in a bowl or cup of water, open your eyes wide and blink 4-5 times to let the dust flow out.

- Eye examination at the nearest specialist facility

Talking about accidents on a happy day may not be appropriate. However, talking about accident prevention is the right thing to do. A happy day is short-lived if...so be careful. Wishing everyone a happy and safe New Year./.

According to VOV.VN