What to do if your child gets sand in his eyes

What are the symptoms if a child gets sand in his eyes?

The human eye is very delicate and susceptible to physical influences, especially contact with foreign bodies.

Remember! For this reason, if sand gets into your eyes, you must immediately rinse your vision and then act based on the symptoms and severity of the situation.

An adult usually has no problems eliminating the problem in himself or another adult, but if sand gets into a child’s eyes, the situation is complicated by the fact that he cannot always tell what happened.

If the parents did not see the process itself, valuable time could be wasted just clarifying the circumstances.

Therefore, you should pay close attention to the following signs that may indicate sand getting into your eyes:

• the child rubs and scratches his eyes ;
• Complaints of burning and itching are possible
• the mucous membrane of the eye turns red;
• the eyelid , under which sand has fallen, swells and swells;
• the child develops photophobia ;
• there is more or less profuse and uncontrollable lacrimation;
• After some time, a cloudy discharge appears from the eyes .

Also, when examining the surface of the conjunctiva, you can see the sand particles themselves, but most often the child simply will not let his parents do this, since it will be difficult for him to even open the affected eye.

However, in most cases the problem can still be solved independently without going to the hospital.

What to do if a child gets sand in his eye?

The first thing to do if a child gets sand in the eye is to calm the child , who may cry in pain.

Important! Next, you need to explain to him that under no circumstances should his eyes be rubbed or scratched (if the child is too small and does not understand this, it is important to stop attempts at rubbing).

How to get a grain of sand?

It is not necessary that the reason lies in a large amount of sand: sometimes the presence of even one grain of sand is quite painful, and in this case it can be quickly found by pulling the upper and lower eyelids of the affected eye in turn.

If within an hour such a foreign body does not come out along with the tear fluid, you can remove it yourself (although it is better not to wait this hour and perform the procedure at the first opportunity).

To do this, you need to pull back your eyelid and carefully pick up a grain of sand with the corner of a clean scarf or napkin folded into a “triangle”.

How to rinse your eyes if there are several grains of sand in the eye?

If there is a suspicion that there is more than one grain of sand in the eye, it is necessary to wash the eye .

It is not recommended to do this outdoors, and if the walk took place in your own yard, you need to go home, wash your hands with soap to prevent infection from getting into the eye when rinsing, and prepare a container with clean water.

What to wash with?

It is advisable to use boiled or non-carbonated bottled water.

Rinsing is done with a cotton swab or a piece of clean cloth soaked in this water .

You can also moisten an improvised tampon in tea leaves: this way you can not only remove a foreign body, but also simultaneously treat the damaged eye (tea leaves relieve irritation and have a calming effect on the mucous membrane of the eye).

Do not forget! If the removal of sand from the eyes was successful, you need to drop any anti-inflammatory drug into the eye (preferably, these are non-irritating drops of chloramphenicol or albucid).

These same drugs, having antibacterial properties, will help reduce the risk of developing infectious diseases if, during the procedure for removing a foreign body, harmful microflora accidentally enters the eye.

After sand removal

After removing sand from the eye and instilling soothing drops, you need to evaluate the condition of the eyes .

If after 1-2 hours the redness and irritation goes away, there is nothing to worry about , but if the symptoms disappear slowly, it is better to give your visual organs rest for the next 2-3 days .

During this period, you should not allow your child to read for a long time, watch TV or perform any other activities that may strain the eyesight.

Taking measures on your own in such cases should not cause difficulties.

But it is important to remember that until the sand is removed from the eyes, the child should not be allowed to rub his eyes with his hands , as this can lead to damage to the tear film and cornea.

How dangerous is sand ingress?

Clogging the eyes with sand causes complications that can lead to irreparable consequences. Therefore, it is necessary to complete the cleansing treatment and monitor the condition of the mucous membrane and the child’s vision for a long time. This will help avoid ophthalmic problems.

• Sand grains injure the cornea and conjunctival layer. They may suffer minor damage in the form of scratches, or more serious damage – cuts.
• Prolonged exposure to sand causes inflammatory processes. The result of this pathology is the occurrence of eye diseases - blepharitis, uveitis, conjunctivitis.
• When the eye organ becomes infected with pathogenic bacteria or fungi, suppuration occurs, which leads to loss of visual acuity.
• Mechanical damage from large grains of sand of an acute configuration can be penetrating, which can become the basis for surgery, or a condition for the development of blindness.

If sand gets into a child’s eye, the problem must be corrected as quickly as possible. First aid is self-cleaning according to our recommendations. If the attempt is unsuccessful, then the child needs help, which can only be provided to him in an ophthalmology office.

In what cases is it necessary to consult a doctor?

Attention! In some cases, it is difficult or impossible to wash and remove sand from a child’s eyes, so in the following situations it is better to contact a specialist:

1. The child continues to complain about painful sensations in the eyes even a long time after removing sand from the eye.
2. Independent attempts to remove the foreign body were unsuccessful.
3. Cloudy discharge continues to come out of the injured eye and over time causes the eyelids to stick together.

In these cases, special medical instruments may be needed.

In addition, in case of serious damage caused by sand, only a doctor can recommend effective remedies necessary to speed up the healing process of the damaged eyeball.

Prevention

To prevent the syndrome, it is necessary to:

• blink as often as possible;
• carefully observe the rules of personal eye hygiene (do not touch them with dirty hands);
• perform special relaxation exercises
• use lenses correctly;
• constantly increase immune strength by taking vitamin supplements;
• take frequent breaks in case of prolonged eye strain;
• eat foods with a fairly high content of vitamins A and B2.

Important to remember! Constant care for your organ of vision is necessary for excellent perception of the entire world around you.

Also, if some discomfort occurs in the eyes, you should not ignore them - it is best to contact an ophthalmologist as soon as possible, who can find out the true causes of this phenomenon and can help cure the disease.

Possible complications after getting sand in the eyes

Getting any foreign body (including sand) into your eyes is always a potentially dangerous situation.

This situation can be fraught with the development of a number of ophthalmological complications.

In this case, serious mechanical damage to the cornea or conjunctival layer in the form of cuts and scratches is possible.

If the sand is not removed in a timely manner, may occur that provoke the development of blepharitis, uveitis and conjunctivitis, and most often the disease will take place in a purulent form , since pathogenic microorganisms almost always enter the organs of vision with sand.

Keep in mind! There is also a danger of a possible penetrating injury if the grain of sand is large enough and has sharp edges.

In such cases, its penetration into the deep tissues of the cornea or sclera is not excluded, which can sometimes lead to a temporary or irreversible decrease in visual acuity .

Causes

It is worth noting that the cause of such a symptom can be not only eye fatigue, but also a serious illness.

Ophthalmologists believe that the causes of sand in the eyes may be the following:

• Penetration of a foreign body into the eye. It could be an eyelash, a mote, a speck of dust - any object, even microscopic in size, can cause irritation of the mucous membrane of the eye and lead not only to a feeling of sand in the eyes, but also to itching and redness. We recommend reading the article about eye injuries.
• Adverse weather conditions. Uncomfortable weather conditions can disrupt the activity of the glands and reduce the already small amount of fluid. A factor that negatively affects the eyes can be heat with a brightly shining sun, and strong gusts of wind. In addition, dry eye mucosa can occur after a long stay in a room with air conditioning.
• Dry eye syndrome (keratoconjunctivitis sicca) is an ophthalmological disease that is formed due to the altered functions of the tear film, which is responsible for lubricating the anterior part of the eyeball.
• Lagophthalmos is the inability to completely close the eyelids during sleep. Because of this, you may feel like there is sand in your eyes in the morning. If you suspect this disease, ask your family to watch you while you sleep (this problem can occur especially often in children and the elderly). This feature may be caused by a stroke or scarring of the eyelids as a result of injury.
• Long-term visual load. After prolonged work at the monitor screen, this symptom may also appear.
• Wearing contact lenses. Daily and prolonged use of lenses can cause dry eyes over time, since soft contact lenses significantly reduce the supply of necessary oxygen to the cornea. In addition, irritation very often occurs due to non-compliance with hygiene rules when using contact lenses.
• Allergic reaction. Sand in the eyes can occur due to an allergy to the eye drops used.
• Hormonal changes in the body. This symptom occurs especially often in women during age-related hormonal changes in the body.
• Diseases of the body, vitamin deficiency. Sometimes dryness and sand in the eyes can appear against the background of the development of diseases such as diabetes, Sjögren's disease, Parkinson's disease, as well as some nervous diseases that cause insomnia. In addition, sand in the eyes can occur due to a lack of vitamins in the body.
• Development of infectious diseases. This reason deserves special attention. Indeed, sand and dryness quite often indicate the onset of inflammatory processes in the tissues located in the anterior part of the eyes - the development of conjunctivitis, blepharitis, keratitis, keratoconjunctivitis.

Most of the reasons listed indicate that you should not ignore the feeling of sand in your eyes. It is worth thinking about your eye health and consulting your doctor in time.