April is Sports Eye Safety Month and the team at New England Eye Center in Boston wants you to enjoy the season with some safety tips for “preventing eye injuries” in the office, in sports, and around your home. Each year over 100,00 people are hurt by sports-related injuries. About 13,500 of these injuries will result in permanent vision loss. An additional 25,000 Americans will visit the emergency room due to work-related eye injuries. In support of Sports Eye Safety Month, Dr. Wu and the refractive team want to remind all employees, athletes, and families in Boston that the great majority of eye injuries can be avoided by simply wearing the proper protections. Feel free to visit New England Eyewear at the www.neec.com website.
And when you are at home you should still be protecting your eyes! According to studies from the American Academy of Ophthalmology only 35% of respondents stated they wear protective eyewear at home. Medical Statistics tell us that eye injury in the home is increasing each year. Injuries can occur working in the yard; raking leaves and mowing the lawn. They can occur in the home if your eyes are exposed to chemical agents such as bleach and oven cleaners. You may not think loose carpets or railings are a danger, but they can cause falls which in turn can lead to an injury directly to the eyes.
Some helpful tips include wearing ANSI approved protective eyewear when performing tasks in and out of the home such as:
- Trimming hedges
- Raking
- Mowing the lawn
- Cleaning while using chemical cleaning agents
- Using power tools
For a more complete list of tips, please visit www.preventblindness.com and www.geteyesmart.com.
Dr. Wu has seen firsthand how preventable eye injuries can cause infections, decrease in vision and in some cases the loss of an eye. Be sure to wear protective eyewear playing sports, working in the yard and any time there is a chance of possible injury. For more information about our board-certified cornea specialist Dr. Helen Wu, click here.
