What Eye Injuries Are Caused by Car Accidents?

Doctors claim the loss of an eye in a car crash is rare, but it happens more often than you may think. A skilled car accident lawyer in Atlanta will work to protect your rights and your eyesight while fighting for the compensation you may need on your road to recovery.

Dangers to a Car Crash Victim’s Eyes

Broken bones and traumatic brain injuries generally come to mind when car crash injuries are mentioned, but car accidents are also a leading cause of severe eye injuries because a car crash victim is exposed to any number of dangers to the eyes.

Data compiled by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) reveals that car crashes account for a significant amount of eye injuries treated in U.S. emergency departments. More than 62% of all treated eye injuries resulted from a motor vehicle crash. And this did not even factor in passengers whose eyes were injured during a collision.  

During a crash, shattered glass and sharp debris can fly around a vehicle, lacerating in and around the eyes. It can also damage the surface of the eye, causing a corneal abrasion, which can become a long-term vision issue.

How Does an Eye Injury Happen in a Crash?

A driver’s head can bash into any number of hard surfaces. Contact with steering wheels, seats, the dash, windows, etc. can cause hemorrhaging around the eye. Blood may pool in the middle of the eyeball, or optic nerve damage can result from bleeding around the eye or in the brain. 

Vision loss often happens when a head injury causes increased pressure on the optic nerve. Additionally, blurry vision is often experienced as a symptom of traumatic brain injuries.

Even a vehicle’s safety equipment can turn disastrous as the velocity of a person’s face meets a deploying airbag. The powder packed into an airbag can explode into gas and cause chemical burns as the airbag deploys. This may feel like a mild irritation at first, but if these burns are not treated in a timely manner, they can cause permanent damage.

Determining Eye Injuries after a Car Crash

It is not always easy to diagnose eye injuries. If left untreated, these injuries are a serious threat to long-term vision problems. Some common symptoms of eye damage include:

• Blurred vision or difficulty seeing
• Blood around or in the eyes
• Cuts in eyelids or around eyes
• Irritated or itching eyes
• One eye cannot move like the other eye
• Peripheral vision impaired
• Shadows over the visual field
• Swollen or puffy eyes

Close attention should be paid to any and all symptoms associated with eyesight or vision. This can be especially true if tiny debris like glass or metal is left in the eyes for extended periods. In these cases, issues like debris in the eye can be remedied by flushing out the foreign material with an eyewash or a saline solution. 

Left untreated, debris embedded in an eye can cause significant damage.  

Eye Injuries Caused by Car Crashes

Some injuries can be seen right away. Others may develop within hours or even days after a crash. It is important to promptly seek medical treatment. 

Some of the most common eye injuries sustained in a car crash include:

• Black eye: The eye is discolored because of bleeding under the skin. It is not a serious injury but may be a sign of a larger issue. 
• Lacerations: Typically, eyelid injuries are not too serious but can signal larger damage to the eyes.
• Chemical burns: Eyes can be exposed to leaking fluids, powder from airbags, and other hazardous chemicals. Damage can be temporary or permanent.
• Orbital fractures: Broken bones in the eye socket are a serious injury and can be associated with other eye injuries and severe brain injury.
• Hyphema: When blood is visible on the eyeball, it means blood is in the eye’s anterior chamber. Often, this is a serious injury and calls for emergency medical attention.
• Retinal detachment: If the retina is damaged or detached, sensitivity to light is skewed and causes the victim to experience floaters, flashes of light, and the eye feeling heavy.
• Vitreous hemorrhage: This causes blurred vision, flashes of light, and floaters. Blood can pool in the back of the eye if you lie down.
• Optic nerve damage: The blood from other injuries causes increased pressure on the optic nerve. Too much pressure on the optic nerve can inhibit circulation, causing severe damage and in some cases, blindness.

Contact an Atlanta Car Accident Lawyer Today

If you suffer from eye injuries sustained in a car crash due to a reckless driver’s negligence, you should contact a car accident attorney with experience. The sooner you do, the better. Eye injuries can significantly hamper your life and often lead to an inability to work.

Please call an Atlanta car accident lawyer who has a history of working tirelessly to obtain the compensation clients need and deserve. Contact us today so we can get started immediately.