Eye Injury Lawyer Near You

The human eye serves as the primary window into the world we live in. The eye is the second most complex organ after the brain.  Among people with functioning eyesight, 80% of our memories come from what is seen and 80% of what we learn comes through the eyes.  Needless to say, our eyes play an irreplaceable role in living a full and productive life.  For most people, serve as a necessary component to almost all types of activities.  The eyes help an individual walk, enjoy recreational activities, and pursue a living to support.  Injuries to the eyes can have a devastatingly negative effect on a person’s life and well-being.

An injury to the eye can be traumatic, painful and debilitating.  Accident related eye injuries can range from temporary discomfort and changed vision to permanent partial or total blindness.  Accidents can cause eye injuries in various ways, but some of the most common ways accidents create eye injuries are through:

  • Blow to the eye – blunt force trauma can damage the eye, eyelids, and the muscles. With enough force the bones that surround the eye can break. A blow frequently causes bleeding to the eye and can even cause the cornea to partially or fully separate from the eye.
  • Cut or scratch on the eye – a scratch on the cornea can cause blurred vision, light sensitivity, pain, redness, excess tears. While small scratches can heal, deeper injuries can cause a lifetime of issues.
  • Object in the eye – debris can make it into the eye, causing extreme discomfort, when the debris remains in the eye the cornea can get cut or scratched.
  • Chemical burn – chemical contact with the eye can cause very serious burns inside the eye that can lead to blindness. Some chemicals can attack the tissue of the eye very quickly causing irreparable harm.

General signs that there has been an injury to the eye include a noticeable change in vision, swelling in the eye, double vision, severe pain, torn eyelid and a headache.  If any of these symptoms or other eye related issues occur after an accident it is important to get to a Doctor as soon as possible.  The longer an eye injury remains unseen the more likely it is for a permanent injury to develop.

The two most common treatments for an eye injury are surgery or therapy.  Surgery can help with ruptured globes, corneal lacerations, retinal detachment, and damaged vision.  Eye therapy comes in various forms.  Some therapy relies on eye strengthening exercises and special glasses to strengthen the eye. There are also cognitive therapies meant to alleviate the stress put on the brain by partial vision loss.  Eye injuries may take years to heal, and some never heal. Therapy is also necessary for those who have completely lost vision in one or both eyes.  It takes therapy to learn to cope with the loss of sight and the potential dizziness and balance issues that can arise following loss of sight. 

Concussion-Related Eye Conditions

Eye symptoms are a common side effect of an accident related concussion.  Studies have found that vision problems accompany a concussion somewhere between 69% to 82% of the time.  Symptoms that indicate there are eye issues following a concussion include:

  • Blurred or double vision
  • Partial vision loss
  • Eye or ocular pain
  • Abnormal eye movement
  • Sensitivity to light and photophobia
  • Visual motion sensitivity
  • Vertical heterophoria

These symptoms can sometimes indicate injury directly to ocular function while other times the eye issues may be related to the vestibular or neurological systems.  With injuries involving the two most complicated organs, the eye and the brain, getting the right medical help is imperative.