Medical professionals urge people to wear eye protection when shooting off fireworks

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — There are Fourth of July gatherings all over the country and fireworks injuries to the eyes are a concern for medical professionals.

A corneal transplant surgeon with the Kansas College of Osteopathic Medicine (KansasCom) says wearing safety glasses or eye protection is recommended for little ones, especially if they will be handling sparklers. The worry isn’t so much about the brightness of the sparkler as the heat and chemicals that could reach the eye.

“Sparklers burn at over 2000 degrees Fahrenheit, and they can quickly create burns to the body, but they can especially create severe burns to the eye. that can be vision threatening,” KansasCom Assistant Dean for Clinical Education DR. Dasa Gangadhar said.

He says that if you don’t have safety glasses, sunglasses will work, and any protection is better than no protection for your eyes.

According to a study from the American Academy of Ophthalmology, 65% of all fireworks injuries are to bystanders. From that study 15% of the injuries are directly to a person’s eyes.

Dr. Dasa Gangadhar says if there is an injury that occurs to the eye, you are not supposed to manipulate, push on, or pour water in your eye, as the eye could have severe damage done, and you could make it worse by trying to treat it yourself.

“do not put anything that will put pressure on an eye because heaven forbid if that eye is ruptured, meaning that there is a violation in the wall of the eye, pressure on the eye can lead to exclusion of the contents of the eye,” said Gangadhar.

Gangadhar says to get to the emergency room right away, and if there is an eye patch or any light covering that would not put pressure on your eye, like sunglasses, it would be the best way to protect you from touching the injured eye.

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