Where There Is No Doctor 2011 219
CHEMICAL BURNS OF THE EYE
Battery acid, lye, gasoline, or a pesticide that gets into the eye
can be dangerous. Hold open the eye. Immediately flood the
eye with clean, cool water. Keep flooding for 30 minutes, or
until it stops hurting. Do not let the water get into the other eye.
RED, PAINFUL EYES—DIFFERENT CAUSES
Many different problems cause red, painful eyes. Correct treatment often
depends on finding the cause, so be sure to check carefully for signs of each
possibility. This chart may help you find the cause:
foreign matter (bit of dirt, etc.)
in the eye (p. 218)
burns or harmful liquids
(p. 219)
‘pink eye’ (conjunctivitis, p. 219)
hay fever (allergic conjunctivitis,
p. 165)
trachoma (p. 220)
measles (p. 311)
acute glaucoma (p. 222)
iritis (p. 221)
scratch or ulcer on the cornea
(p. 224)
usually affects one eye only;
redness and pain variable
one or both eyes;
redness and pain variable
usually both eyes (may start
or be worse in one)
usually reddest
at outer edge
‘burning’ pain, usually mild
usually one eye only;
reddest next to
the cornea
pain often great
‘PINK EYE’ (CONJUNCTIVITIS)
This infection causes redness, pus, and mild ‘burning’ in one or both eyes. Lids
often stick together after sleep. It is especially common in children.
Treatment:
First clean pus from the eyes with a
clean cloth moistened with boiled water.
Then put in antibiotic eye ointment
(p. 378). Pull down the lower lid and put
a little bit of ointment inside, like this:
Putting ointment outside the eye does
no good.
Prevention:
OINETYME ENT
CAUTION: Do
not touch the tube
against the eye.
Most conjunctivitis is very contagious. The infection is easily spread from one
person to another. Do not let a child with pink eye play or sleep with others, or use
the same towel. Wash hands after touching eyes.