Eye Injury

The eyes are easily one of the body parts we rely on most heavily. Many of us take our eyes for granted — until something goes wrong. If you’ve suffered an eye injury, you know that the results can be far-reaching.

Understanding the different types of eye injuries, how they happen, and how they’re treated is the first step on the journey to healing. If an eye injury puts a strain on your finances, a personal injury lawyer can offer advice on how to go about seeking compensation.

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What Is the Impact of an Eye Injury?

Eye injuries can range from a minor scratch to the complete loss of your eyes. While you’re healing from a serious eye injury, you’re usually not able to work. Although financial stress often accompanies eye injuries, that’s just the beginning of the negative impact this type of injury can have on your life.

An eye injury often leaves you unable to operate a vehicle or care for your family. Without the use of your eyes, you may not be able to run to the grocery store or pick your kids up from the bus stop.

Even when a full recovery is possible, the short-term process of healing an eye injury can bring life as you know it to a crashing halt. When healing isn’t possible, you may need to make significant alterations to your lifestyle. A permanent eye injury can have a severe negative impact on your overall quality of life.

What Types of Eye Injuries Can Occur?

The eyes are one of the most delicate body parts, and they can be injured in many different ways.

Some of the most common types of eye injuries include:

Corneal abrasion, or scratched eye
Detached retina
Burns
Hemorrhage, or bleeding
Foreign object in the eye
Black eye
Eye socket fracture

Eye injuries are often complicated. One or both eyes might be injured. Different types of eye injuries have different levels of severity, but these levels can vary by case.

For example, a detached retina is a medical emergency that brings a high chance of permanent vision loss. On the other hand, a scratched eye can be a minor or major injury, depending on the length, depth, and location of the scratch.

What Are Common Causes of Eye Injuries?

Eye injuries can happen in a nearly countless number of ways. Even when the eyes are closed, the eyelids offer little protection from many of the common types of eye injuries.

Some of the incidents that are commonly associated with eye injuries include:

Anyone can experience an eye injury. However, certain circumstances can increase the risk. Participating in sports and working in certain industries, like the construction field, can greatly increase the chance of sustaining an eye injury.

What Are Some Treatment Options For an Eye Injury?

Eye injury treatment depends on the type of injury. Treatment typically begins with seeing a healthcare provider and undergoing the diagnostic process. A doctor will conduct a variety of tests to determine how the eye is injured. Based on the diagnosis, the doctor will identify the appropriate course of treatment.

Minor eye injuries usually lead to a full recovery. Treatment for a minor injury to the eye might include:

Rinsing of the eye
Medicated eye drops
An eye patch
Ice packs
Rest

Even a minor eye injury often requires allowing the eye to rest so it can heal. This often involves putting as little strain on the injured eye as possible, such as covering the eye with a patch or reducing exposure to bright lighting.

Treating Serious Eye Injuries

When eye injuries are serious, treatment often involves a higher level of medical intervention. However, treatment procedures depend heavily on the type of injury.

For example, even a serious scratch — or corneal abrasion — can heal simply through rinsing, resting, and applying antibiotic eye drops. But, a corneal abrasion can also lead to serious complications. Some of these include keratitis (inflamed cornea), iritis (inflamed iris), and corneal ulcers (open sores).

When basic eye injury treatment isn’t enough, there are a few different treatment options a doctor might recommend. For example, treatment for an eye socket fracture might involve setting the bones around the eye.

On the other hand, treatment for a detached retina can involve methods such as:

Laser therapy
Cryopexy, or surgical treatment using cold therapy
Pneumatic retinopexy, or air bubble injection
Vitrectomy, or removal of fluid from the eyeball
Scleral buckling, or surgery to reattach the retina

Medical intervention can’t cure all types of eye injury. For instance, when the eye is severely damaged by trauma or a burn, the result may be loss of vision or loss of the entire eyeball.

What Is the Cost of an Eye Injury?

The process of treating an eye injury can involve incurring high medical costs while you miss work. Multiple trips to the doctor will incur medical bills. Furthermore, when an injury requires surgery or a medical procedure, the cost of treatment can go up significantly.

Some eye injuries can result in a full recovery, while others can tragically end with permanent loss of vision. When this is the case, you can be left unable to return to work. This can make it incredibly difficult to afford living expenses.

When an eye injury leads to loss of vision, the financial impact ripples out into many other areas of life. You may need to rely on hired aid to accomplish tasks like cleaning, shopping, and childcare. Blindness often leads to the need for assistive devices or other forms of support as well, like a guide dog.

Recovering Eye Injury Compensation

If you suffer an eye injury that has an impact on your finances and quality of life, personal injury law provides an avenue for seeking compensation. The first step in recovering compensation for an eye injury is to attend a consultation with a personal injury lawyer. A lawyer will examine the facts and identify whether compensation is an option for you.

Whether you qualify for compensation and where the money comes from depends on how the accident happened. If you were injured in a car accident, for instance, a lawyer may be able to seek compensation through the other driver’s insurance policy. After a workplace accident, compensation can come from your employer’s workers’ comp policy.

Dealing With an Eye Injury? Call a Tifton Personal Injury Lawyer

If you’ve experienced an eye injury in Tifton, GA, The King Firm may be able to help you recover compensation. Our award-winning personal injury lawyers have a proven track record of success and are ready to fight for you. Contact us today at (229) 386-1376 to schedule your free consultation today.