Eye emergencies
Red or pink eyes, something in your eye, or a sudden change in your sight.
Sudden loss of vision, chemicals in the eye, or a serious injury: call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room now.
For anything else urgent, call us first at (740) 594-3718 for guidance.
We offer drop-in care for eye emergencies, and your optometrist can help with red eyes, pink eye, sore eyes and removing something from your eye.
It is not always necessary to go to an emergency room for an eye problem: many people who seek urgent eye care there could have been treated by an optometrist. Still, use your own judgment. If you think you need the nearest emergency room, do not delay.
What counts as an eye emergency
An eye emergency is anything that puts your eyes or vision at risk of permanent damage. The most common are:
- An eye infection
- Something stuck in the eye
- Eye trauma
- A scratch on the eye
- Sudden loss of vision in one or both eyes
- A contact lens lost in the eye
- Shattered eyeglass lenses
- Sudden light flashes or floaters
Symptoms that need urgent care
- Sudden loss of vision
- Sudden double vision
- Sudden eye pain
- New light flashes or floaters
- Something in the eye
- Chemicals in the eye
- Swelling or pain after eye surgery
What to do
Stay calm
Staying calm helps you think straight and helps the people around you stay calm.
Call before you judge it yourself
Never try to judge how serious an eye injury is on your own. Call us for instructions. If something may have gone into the eye, or there is blood or discharge, call right away: we may send you to an emergency room.
Protect the eye until you are seen
Do not press on or rub the eye. Do not try to remove an object yourself, and never an embedded one. Do not use dry cotton, cotton swabs or tweezers on the eye. If you cannot flush a small particle out with water or saline, get urgent eye care.
Is an eye infection an emergency?
An infection like conjunctivitis (pink eye) usually does not need emergency care, but if you think you have one, see your eye doctor as soon as possible for a diagnosis and treatment.
Need to be seen?
Tell our assistant what happened. For sudden vision loss, chemicals or a serious injury, call 911 or go to the emergency room first.