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Eye injuries are very painful and can lead to blindness. The American Academy of Ophthalmology reports that there are 100,000 sports-related eye injuries each year in the United States with 42,000 going to emergency rooms and 13,500 going blind.  Every 13 minutes an emergency room treats a sports-related eye injury.  One in three of these sports-related injuries involve children. The highest-risk sports are baseball (most commonly for children ages 5 - 14) and basketball (leading cause of eye injuries in people ages 15 - 64.) Further, 1 in 10 college basketball teams can expect to get an eye injury on the court.

Eye injuries also happen in sports other than baseball and basketball. The top 14 include water and pool activities, guns (including air, gas, spring, and BB guns), football, soccer, riding bicycles, health club activities and racquet sports. (Source: PreventBlindness.org)

NEI (National Eye Institute) encourages coaches and parents to get involved in making sure players wear protective eye equipment when playing even though most sports do not require the use of eye protection. NEI feels that 90 percent of eye injuries can be avoided if players were wearing protective eyewear. Protective eyewear consists of safety glasses and goggles, safety shields and eye guards designed for the particular sport being played. Protective eyewear should be made of ultra-strong polycarbonate which is ten times more impact-resistant than other plastics.

Paintball is a very popular recreational activity and is considered by many to be a sport. It accounts for at least 12 hundred eye injuries every year according to AAFP (American Academy of Family Physicians. Types of paintball eye injuries include hyphemas and vitreous hemorrhages (bleeding in the eye), retinal detachments, cataracts, corneal abrasions, and commotio retina (bruising and swelling of the retina). Many of these injuries can lead to permanent visual impairment, even vision loss.

Should an eye injury be caused by a severe trauma to the head, the damage may not be evident for some time. These injuries are considered catastrophic. There may never be complete recovery. Obtaining the best diagnosis and medical care may be required.

Playing some sports can be dangerous by virtue of the sport. However, there are occasions where someone can be held responsible for eye injuries and/or blindness. If a participant in a sport is wearing the correct protective eye equipment which is faulty, then the manufacturer, or those maintaining the eye equipment, may have culpability. Negligence in instructing participants on how to use protective eye equipment or failing to provide sufficient supervision may also cause liability. If the organization sponsoring, or holding, the sporting event knew, or should have known, that the eye protective equipment being worn by participants was recalled, improperly maintained or otherwise defective, they too may be sued in a lawsuit.

Fort Myers Personal Injury Attorney, Randall L. Spivey is a Board Certified Trial Attorney – the highest recognition for competence bestowed by the Florida Bar and a distinction earned by just one (1%) percent of Florida attorneys.  He has handled over 2,000 personal injury and wrongful death cases throughout Florida.  For a free and confidential consultation to discuss your legal rights, contact the Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A., in Lee County at 239.337.7483 or toll free at 1.888.477.4839,or by email to Randall@SpiveyLaw.com.  Visit SpiveyLaw.com for more information.  You can contact Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A.in Charlotte County at 941.764.7748 and in Collier County 239.793.7748.