Could you the spot the signs of an eye emergency?

National Eye Health Week 2024

Half of all sight loss is avoidable, so it’s vital we're aware of the ‘red flags’ that could signal a threat to our vision, and know where to seek help to prevent irreversible vision impairment.

Conditions like retinal detachment, severe forms of uveitis, certain types of glaucoma, as well as corneal abrasions and infection can all cause sudden and permanent sight loss.

The warning signs

Anybody suddenly experiencing the following symptoms should contact their local optician without delay:

• A curtain, veil or shadow in your vision

• Sudden sight loss or double vision

• Acute redness in one or both eyes

• Photophobia (extreme sensitivity to light)

• Severe eye pain

• Suddenly seeing lots of flashes or floaters (little dots or squiggles).

For most, these symptoms will be caused by a minor condition that is easily treatable, however, it’s very important to rule out serious eye complaints that can lead to sudden and permanent vision loss, and these symptoms should be checked out within 48 hours and often on the same day if possible.

The emergency eye examination will be free of charge under the NIPEARSs scheme (see below for more details)

Urgent medical attention should be sought if you have a foreign body in your eye that you can’t flush out at home using an eye wash - for this you can try and contact us under NIPEARS but you may need to go to your local A&E or Minor Injuries if they still exist in your area - especially if the foreign substance in your eye is alkali (caustic) which may require constant irrigation for up to 30 minutes

Treating eye emergencies

Many of us think high street opticians only offer routine sight tests but more and more now provide a wide range of enhanced services, including same day NIPEARS appointments for urgent eye care issues. All Mackey Opticians practices offer NIPEARS although we don't always have an optometrist on-site every day and we will try to get you an appointment on the same day or within 48 hours at one of our practices.

These services are free on the NHS, even if you don’t qualify for NHS sight tests.

If you require medication to treat your condition the optometrist can often write a prescription for you there and then or refer you to hospital care, if necessary.

Accessing the wide range of services available at community opticians helps reduce the burden on other primary care services such as GPs and ensures eye conditions are diagnosed and treated early to prevent avoidable sight loss.

Further reading:

Emergency Eyecare now available at ALL Mackey Opticians practices | Mackey Opticians