Emergency & Urgent Eye Care

Foreign Body Sensation (FBS) is named after the feeling of something being in your eye. The majority of the time, there is nothing actually in the eye. If the cornea is breached, the nerve fibers on the cornea can have the sensation of being scratched.

A scratched cornea can also be referred to as a corneal abrasion. This normally occurs when there has been trauma or a tear on the cornea. People describe this as a feeling of “sand in the eye." A corneal abrasion can cause pain, light sensitivity, redness, and tearing. Most doctors will prescribe an antibiotic eye drop or an ointment to help the healing process as it can sometimes be painful just to open and close the eye.   

Conjunctivitis, also known as "pink eye" is inflammation of the conjunctiva, which is a membrane that lines the eyelid and eyeball. Conjunctivitis many have a variety of causes, but it is most commonly known for being a viral infection. Symptoms can include redness, tearing, itchiness, discharge, and sensitivity to light. 

Those who wear contacts should stop wearing them until the eye is completely healed. 

Ocular trauma is any injury to the eye, eyelid, or surrounding bone around the eye. Ocular trauma can be minor or severe, even resulting in loss of vision. 

Blunt trauma occurs when a dull object hits the eye or an area around the eye, causing damage to the eye itself or to the bones around the eye. Blunt trauma is often caused by getting hit in or around the eye by sports equipment, a fist or and pellets from a paint ball gun.

If you get hit in or around your eye and experience any vision or eye symptoms, please call our office right away for an immediate appointment. 

Liquids or powder can cause chemical burns and can affect the epithelial layer of eye. If a foreign substance (especially an alkaline) comes into contact with your eye, it is important to rinse the eye (with saline or fresh water) promptly and thoroughly. Quick action may dramatically reduce the risk of injury and long-term damage. Also, always be sure to thoroughly wash your hands after handling any chemicals to ensure you don't accidently rub any of it into your eyes. In severe cases, chemical burns can lead to blindness. 

As our eyes age, most individuals will  notice floaters, lines, or dots in their vision. This happens because our vitreous starts to thicken or shrink. It becomes serious when there are a lot of new floaters, as well as flashes of light. Occasionally, there will be a dark shadow or a curtain like effect to your vision. These can be a sign of a posterior vitreous detachment (PVD), a retinal detachment, or a retinal tear. 

A PVD isn't painful and doesn't usually cause vision loss, though it can potentially lead to complications that do. Some causes of floaters and flashes include:

• Eye infections
• Eye injury
• Diabetes
• Histoplasmosis
• Choroidal neovascular membranes
• Cytomegalovirus retinitis
• HIV/AIDS
• Stickler syndrome
• Vitreomacular traction

Sudden vision loss is considered the swift, usually unexpected, loss of the ability to see well or at all. Sudden vision loss can happen within seconds, minutes, hours, or even a few days. There can be many reasons as to why this happens, but in all cases, sudden vision loss is considered a medical emergency. 

Common causes of a sudden loss of vision include: Acute glaucoma, Endophthalmitis (inflammation caused by infection), eye injury, Giant cell arteritis (temporal arteritis), Iritis/anterior uveitis, Ocular migraine, Optic neuritis, Retinal artery occlusion/Retinal vein occlusion, (blockage in the blood flow to or from your retina), Retinal detachment, Stroke or transient ischemic attack, Vitreous hemorrhage (blood leaking into or near the vitreous humor), ARMD. 

If you are experiencing any vison loss and are unable to get a hold of our offices, we recommend going to the ER.