Ocular traumas -- eye injuries that requires treatment in an emergency room, urgent care center, or doctor’s office -- are a leading cause of visual loss for younger people.

Penetrating ocular trauma is an injury caused by a sharp object piercing the eye -- such as a knife, stone, or wood -- or from a BB or similar high-speed object, in which the object enters the eye and causes damage to the structures it comes in contact with.  

Perforating ocular injuries are those in which the foreign object enters the eye at one point and exits the eye at another point. 

In both types of ocular injury patients are at risk of blindness, and should be treated by an eye professional as soon as possible. Injuries associated with ocular trauma include traumatic cataract or lens dislocation, retinal detachment, choroidal rupture, corneal and conjunctival laceration, glaucoma, and scleral rupture.

It is important not to rub your eye that has suffered the trauma. You should also minimize movement of the injured eye to prevent additional damage until examined.

Ocular trauma can often be avoided by wearing protective eye wear.

Duke Eye Center treats a variety of ocular traumas at locations near Durham, Raleigh, Cary, and other areas of North Carolina. Call 919-681-3937 for an appointment.