Eye Injuries in a Houston Personal Injury Accident
Injuries to the eyes are among the most serious. When your vision is compromised, so, too, can be your ability to work and enjoy your life. Eye injuries can cause excruciating pain and leave victims struggling with serious emotional distress.
Keep reading to learn more about common types of eye injuries, top causes, and what options you might have if someone else caused you to suffer painful trauma to the eyes.
Table of Contents
Common Types of Eye Injuries
These are the most common types of eye injuries that can result from traumatic events.
Corneal Abrasion (Scratched Eye)
A scratch on the eye’s surface is called a corneal abrasion. When a foreign object is projected into an eye, or when you rub your eye after a foreign object has gotten into it, it can result in a corneal abrasion.
Some foreign objects and incidents that project them into the eyeball include:
- Debris from a windshield, window, or dashboard accessory in a car crash
- Waste from sawing or drilling while not using appropriate personal protective eyewear
- Dust or dirt transferred from object causing a blunt force trauma to the eye
Corneal abrasion can also result from airbag deployment. Corneal abrasions can be mild or severe. If the projectile in the eyeball cannot be dislodged with tears and is not removed by a physician, permanent damage and loss of vision can occur.
Retinal Detachment
Retinal detachment is when a thin tissue at the back of the eye (retina) is torn away from the eye itself. Delayed diagnosis of retinal detachment increases the risk of negative outcomes, like permanent vision loss. The sudden appearance of many “floaters” (little specks drifting through your field of vision) is one symptom of retinal detachment.
Other symptoms include:
- Reduced peripheral (side) vision over time
- Flashes of light in one or both eyes
- A veil-like shadow across the field of vision
Retinal detachment can usually be repaired with surgery.
Subconjunctival hemorrhage
A subconjunctival hemorrhage is a broken blood vessel in the eye. It’s commonly characterized by a bright red spot in the white of the eye.
Eye penetration or perforation
When an object pierces the surface of the eyeball, it can cause a penetrating or perforating eye injury. Penetrating injuries go through the surface of the eyeball but have no exit point. Perforating injuries have both an entry and exit wound point.
These injuries are often caused by wood, metal, and stone. They can occur while chopping or cutting wood or hammering metal or nails on a construction job.
Chemical burn
Chemical burns typically happen to men working in industrial plant settings. Whether acid burns or alkali burns, these can be horrific injuries.
Chemical eye injuries are true catastrophic emergencies requiring immediate medical attention. Although the most devastating impacts of a chemical eye injury, including injuries like corneal melt and glaucoma, happen over a long term period, effective diagnosis and treatment in the hours and days after the injury occurs can prevent the most tragic consequences.
If you’ve experienced these or other eye injuries after a car accident, you should seek legal advice. Our experienced Houston personal injury lawyers at Attorney Brian White Personal Injury Lawyers are ready to talk to you about your case 24/7.
What Are the Symptoms of an Eye Injury?
The eye can sustain an injury in many ways. Eye injury can lead to long term or permanent damage and loss of vision if not quickly identified and properly treated.
Learn to recognize the symptoms of eye injury:
- Trouble seeing, blurred vision, double vision
- Cut or torn eyelid, difficulty moving an eyelid
- Eye pain that’s ongoing
- Difficulty moving one eye
- Protruding eyeball (sticks out of the socket)
- Abnormal pupil size or shape
If you experience any of these symptoms, you should seek medical treatment immediately. Eye injuries can be difficult to diagnose, and you may need to see an eye specialist, like an ophthalmologist, for diagnosis and treatment.
What Causes Most Eye Injuries in the United States?
Some of the most traumatic eye injuries happen to children who suffer dog bites. It’s likely that over two million people in the U.S. experience eye injuries each year.
According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, falls are the leading cause of eye injuries. Of course, falls are not the only cause of eye injuries. Car accidents can result in eye injuries. During a car accident, an injury victim can sustain an eye injury as a result of flying glass or debris.
Many workplace injuries are the result of falls. Nearly one-third of falls are caused by slip-and-fall incidents.
What Legal Damages Are Available for Eye Injuries in Houston, TX?
If you suffered an eye injury, whether it was caused by an object striking the eye or industrial chemical exposure, you are entitled to seek medical treatment and financial compensation. Depending on the cause of your injury and where it occurred, your rights may differ.
If you were injured at work, workers’ compensation may be available to you. Workers’ compensation reimburses an injured person for medical expenses and lost wages, regardless of the party at-fault. If your eye injury was caused by a defective product, you may have a product liability claim.
Some damages that may be available to those who have suffered eye injuries include:
- Expenses for medical diagnosis and treatment.
- Your lost wages, if you miss work due to your injury. Eye injuries can hinder or entirely prevent you from working. We can help you recover your lost wages.
- Pain and suffering. Damages from pain and suffering can be significant, but can also be some of the most difficult to prove.
None of these financial compensation benefits are guaranteed or automatic. Damages have to be proven by the injured party. The legal team at Attorney Brian White Personal Injury Lawyers knows how to prove eye injury damages to recover full compensation for our clients.
How Long Do I Have to File an Eye Injury Lawsuit in Texas?
In Texas, the statute of limitations, or deadline, to file a lawsuit is two years from the date of the injury. An injured person may lose their right to sue forever if a lawsuit is not filed by the last day of the statute of limitations.
Our work to build our clients’ cases often takes time. For this reason, it is in your best interest to contact our office for your free consultation today.
What If I’m Blamed For My Eye Injury – Can I Still Recover Compensation?
You may be hesitant to contact an attorney if you think you may be at fault for your accident. However, a party who is partially at fault can still recover compensation in Texas.
Texas has a modified comparative negligence rule with a 51% bar to recovery.
An injured party can recover once they prove another party was at least partially responsible – as long as they’re not mostly to blame. Each party’s percentage of responsibility for the accident is determined.
Then, the injured person’s damages are reduced by their percentage of the liability. For example, if you are 25% at fault, you will only receive compensation for 75% of the damages you incurred. A party with 25% responsibility for $400,000 in losses will only recover $300,000 under comparative negligence.
Contact our Houston Personal Injury Lawyers Today
If you have been suffering from an eye injury after an accident in Houston, TX, don’t hesitate to call Attorney Brian White Personal Injury Lawyers for help. Our Houston personal injury attorneys can help you fight for the money you need and deserve. We are waiting and available 24/7 and offer free evaluations and consultations on your case.
