What is Foreign Body in the eye
A foreign body is an object on or in the eye that should not be there. It could be a speck of dirt or dust, a hair, an eyelash, a splinter, or any other object. It can be on the outside of the eyeball (extraocular) or inside the eyeball.
If the object is on the outside of the eyeball, it can usually be washed out or taken out by your doctor. An object inside the eyeball is an emergency,and it must be treated with surgery.
Follow these instructions at home:
- Take over-the-counter and prescription medicines only as told by your doctor. Use eye drops or ointment as told.
- If you were prescribed antibiotic drops or ointment, use it as told by your doctor. Do notstop using it even if you start to feel better.
- If
you have a bandage on your eye (eye shield):
- Wear it as told. Follow instructions from your doctor about when to take it off.
- Do not drive or use heavy machinery while wearing the bandage.
- If
you do not have a bandage on your eye:
- Keep your eye closed as much as possible.
- Do notrub your eye.
- Wear dark glasses in bright light.
- Do notwear contact lenses until your eye feels normal, or as told by your doctor.
- If you are doing activities with a high risk of eye injury, such as using high-speed tools, wear protective eye covering.
- Keep all follow-up visits as told by your doctor. This is important.
Contact a doctor if:
- You have more pain in your eye.
- You have problems with your eye bandage.
- You have abnormal fluid (discharge) coming from your eye.
Get help right away if:
- Your ability to see (vision) gets worse.
- You have more redness and swelling in or around your eye.
Summary
- A foreign body is an object on or in the eye that should not be there.
- An object on the outside of the eyeball can usually be washed out or taken out by your doctor. An object inside the eyeball is an emergency.
- If you have a bandage on your eye (eye shield), do notdrive while wearing it.
- If you have more pain in your eye, contact your doctor.
