Eye burns from welding
If you want to know about eye injuries following welding, If you and your friends have recently suffered from eye damage due to radiation emitted from welding machines and you want to learn more about eye damage following welding and its symptoms and treatment, we recommend that you read on.
What you will read next:
Introduction
It must have occurred to many of you readers that you happened to be passing by a place where hardworking workers were engaged in welding operations, and suddenly your gaze inadvertently fell on the light reflected from the welding machine.
Do you know the side effects of this event, or more fully, the side effects that welding rays can have on the eye?
If you are one of those people who have questions like the above questions in your mind and you are looking for answers to them.
Read more, in this part of the introduction, we emphasize that standard goggles must be used when welding.
the important point is that if the person doing the welding, stares at the light emitted from the welding machine, in case of eye pain, he should not use eye drops arbitrarily under any circumstances, and he should close his eyes with a bandage and see a doctor as soon as possible.
Eyes and welding
Flashing of the eye due to exposure to radiation from the welding machine is one of the most painful experiences that can happen to a person. If we want to know the cause of this problem, there is only one reason, and that is that the user has not followed the precautions, neglected and has not used standard goggles to protect his eyes from welding rays.
Statistics show that people whose job and profession was welding, experience the above problem at least once, even despite following safety tips (due to the negligence of unwanted moments).
Will only people who do welding, suffer from eye burn when welding?
No!
This problem that occurs after welding does not only affect the person doing the welding, but also people and passers-by may stare at the welding light and the light may be a problem for their eyes.
In addition, eyes that are overexposed to ultraviolet light from welding machines can damage their corneas. In addition to these devices, staring directly at the sun, even during a solar eclipse, poses exactly the same problem.
Also, halogen bulbs and the reflection of sunlight from the snow that hits the eye can cause the same effects as those damaged by welding engine light and staring at the sun for a long time.
In the following, we want to talk more about the side effects of welding on the eye:
Why is the light generated by the welding machine harmful to the eye?
The welding machine can transmit a very wide range of ultraviolet rays to our eyes, so exposure to this ultraviolet light for a long time can be harmful to the eye to a large extent.
signs
In this section, we want to refer to the symptoms of people who have suffered from welding flash burn.
Some of these symptoms are as follows:
- Blurred vision
- Temporary blindness
- watery eyes
- Eye irritation
- Itchy eyes
- Feeling of a foreign body in the damaged eye
- Inflamed and bloody red eyes
- photophobia
- Increased sensitivity to light and fear of staring at light
- And eye pain
How is eye damage caused by light from a welding machine?
Welding machines generate light that includes different types of ultraviolet wavelengths, so welders are required to use eye protection or standard glasses when using them. If they do not take this issue seriously, it can cause serious damage to the cornea and eyes. Complications caused by this process are called flashing of the eye following welding.
- Abundant pain of the eye
- burning
- Itching
- Irritability
- Bloody red eyes
- Blurred vision
- And even temporary blindness are among the most common symptoms these people experience.
One of the most sensitive parts of the body is the eye, which can also be exposed to work-related injuries. And the eye suffers more damage due to exposure to welding ultraviolet rays. Burning, inflammation, and sensitivity of the cornea are the most common complications of this electric shock.
How the welding machine involves the eye?
This injury can affect one or both of your eyes, depending on the condition of the exposure. Eye burns can be treated in most cases, especially those who see a doctor quickly, and the visual condition of the injured person will improve significantly over time. Some people think that following a flash burn, there will be no particular eye problem and the symptoms are temporary, But we must emphasize that every time a flash burn occurs, at any stage of corneal damage, a layer of the cornea of the eye is destroyed, and the reconstruction of the new layer will certainly not be like the original layer.
So people who experience multiple flash burns from welding are more likely than others to experience eye problems, including cataracts (especially premature ones).
Signs and Symptoms of People who suffer from flash burn due to welding, depending on whether the complication is severe or mild, how long the exposure lasts, show different symptoms and symptoms may not be immediately noticeable.
A few hours after exposure to ultraviolet light, other symptoms appear.
These symptoms are called symptoms of eye flare and are as follows:
- Blurred vision
- bloody eyes
- Redness of the eyes
- Eye pain that can be mild to moderate
- Sensitivity to light, Fear of light or photophobia
- Itchy eyes, burning eyes, watery eyes and uncontrollable tears
- Feeling of pressure on the eye
- Feeling heaviness on the eye
- Feeling of a foreign body in the eye
What measures are necessary if we suffer from eye burn after welding and what should we do at the scene?
The important point is that a person who is exposed to a welding machine or has a flash burn after staring for a long time at halogen and sunlight bulbs, The first step should be to wash the eyes frequently with clean, flowing water and to dry the eyes.
Therefore, at the scene of the accident, the first and most important step is to wash with plenty of clean water and dry the eyes.
It is better to close the damaged eye so that the light does not hit the sensitive and inflamed cornea.
Closing the eyes should last for several hours.
Some cases of flash burn may improve over time with these simple steps.
Following the tips is effective for healing the cornea as soon as possible and preventing permanent damage to our eyes.
When these points are not followed, the possibility of corneal damage increases; the points are as follows:
Choose clean ice, crush them and wrap them in a wrapped plastic bag. Wrap the bag in a thin, clean cloth and place it on the eyes. Put iced tea bag on the eyes to reduce pain and inflammation and avoid watching TV and phone screens for 24 to 48 hours, Be sure to wear standard sunglasses with full coverage on both sides when exposed to sunlight.
These standard glasses must have a polarizing label.
Other home remedies include:
Applying homemade masks on the eyes to reduce itching and swelling, caused by eye damage with light emitted from the welding machine.
Some people use washed cucumber skins, washed potatoes and rose water on their eyes.
We emphasize that these products can be harmful due to contamination.
What is the medical treatment for welding eye burns?
If you have a flash burn in your eye and your symptoms persist despite the measures we mentioned in the previous section, or the severity of the pain and discomfort is progressing, you should see an ophthalmologist as soon as possible because your cornea is inflamed and It is very prone to infections and wounds.
The doctor will use drops and oral painkillers according to your condition, Unfortunately, many people use anesthetic eye drops arbitrarily in the above conditions.
These measures are extremely dangerous, ie you should not use any analgesic drops arbitrarily after flash burn due to welding and other eye burns following exposure to sunlight, halogen lamps, etc.
Therapeutic measures
Among the treatment measures, we mention the following:
Depending on your condition, your doctor will use sterile antibiotic eye drops or ointment for you, and your doctor will install an eye cover pad to prevent eye radiation. A dilating eye drops is used to relax the muscles and this dilating eye drops will reduce pain.
Corticosteroid eye drops are used to reduce inflammation. Avoid using these drops arbitrarily.
Because they delay wound healing.
How can we prevent flash burns from welding?
We can say that eye burns will be 100% preventable. Many welders today are obliged to use special glasses, and thus they can be sure that if they use these glasses properly and always, they will protect their eyes against any damage; only due to the high volume of work, carelessness may occur and the use of glasses may be neglected and for a moment these coverings may be removed from the eyes, resulting in serious complications for the eyes.
Many of the equipment used by welders may seem to have a protective section in their machine catalog but we must say that these tools (even if they are called protective covers), because they do not use quality and standard raw materials, do not have a good protective role in the eyes, so high quality and standard equipment and eye protection must be taken seriously.
Concluding remarks
We discussed about the side effects that welders may experience in the above. People who stare at the sun for a long time, even during a solar eclipse, or who have been exposed to halogen and intense light for a long time, may experience flash burns. People who, for any reason, are exposed to intense and unprotected UV radiation to the eye, develop eye flare-ups.
Most cases of eye burns will improve with immediate washing, with plenty of running water, as well as drying with a sterile towel and closing the eyes for 24 to 48 hours and a few days of eye rest and taking painkillers.
We emphasize that you should not use anesthetic eye drops arbitrarily during this period.
If your symptoms are getting worse, see an ophthalmologist as soon as possible because delayed treatment may cause infection and corneal ulcers. Un h