Call Immediately for Emergency Eye Care
Eye emergencies can put your sight at risk. Your eyes are sensitive to injury, irritants, and sudden health changes. If you notice symptoms, it’s time to call for help.
When an emergency occurs, your first instinct might be to call an ambulance or visit emergency care. For life-threatening injuries, emergency healthcare should be your first call.
In most eye emergency cases, you can come to us for urgent care. Our team can diagnose and treat many eye emergencies or injuries.
Contact us for an emergency eye care appointment.
What Is Covered by Alberta Health?
Alberta Health coverage is available to those experiencing eye emergencies, including:
- Sudden changes in vision
- Dry eye
- Eye and eyelid inflammation
- Styes
- Issues related to glaucoma, retinal disease, and diabetes
- Eye infections
- Eye injuries, including foreign objects in the eyes
- Post-operative cataract surgery complications
No referral is necessary when you require urgent eye care.
What Causes an Eye Emergency?
Eye emergencies can result from eye injury, chemical exposure, eye disease, or sudden health changes. There are certain symptoms that should never be ignored, like:
- Eye pain, such as stinging and burning
- Pupils of different sizes
- Extreme eye redness
- Flashes and floaters
- Severe headaches
- Double vision
- Sensitivity to light
- Bleeding or bruising
Different emergencies require different forms of medical treatment.
Most smaller foreign bodies won’t cause an eye emergency. Eyelashes, hair, and dust particles are examples of foreign bodies that typically resolve on their own.
Unfortunately, a stuck contact lens or sharp grains of sand can scratch the surface of the eye. A scratch can heal on its own, but you may need eye drops to prevent infection. You should also book an appointment to check how much damage was done.
Larger and sharper objects can cause significant damage. Never attempt to remove a larger foreign object yourself. Instead, a health professional must remove the object to reduce the risk of further injury.
Blunt trauma can be any injury resulting from a force directed at your eye or surrounding area. The most well-known symptom of a blow to the eye is a black eye, but blunt trauma can cause more than ugly bruising.
Symptoms of blunt eye trauma may include:
- Pain
- Redness
- Bruising
- Bleeding
- Swelling
- Blurry vision
- Double vision
- Flashes of light
- Vision problems
- Floaters or dark spots
- Problems with eye movement
- Changes in eye appearance
It can be tempting to sleep it off or wait before seeking medical attention, but it’s important to visit a medical professional after experiencing an injury or blunt trauma, no matter how minor.
Although many eye diseases and conditions develop slowly, changes in your eye health can develop as eye disease progresses. Sudden changes or symptoms are considered a medical emergency.
Contact emergency care immediately or call us to book an emergency appointment if you experience any of the following eye emergency symptoms:
- Eye pain
- Redness
- Bleeding
- Discharge
- Vision loss
- Blurry vision
- Bulging eye
- Double vision
- Bruising around eye
- Sudden light sensitivity
- Burning or stinging
- Pupils of different sizes
- Irritation or severe itchiness
- Eyes not moving together
- New or severe headaches
Chemical exposure or a chemical burn is when a foreign substance or chemical enters the eye. You don’t need to be in a lab or a construction site for chemical exposure. Cleaning products, hand sanitizers, and kitchen ingredients are all common chemical irritants.
Common symptoms of chemical burns are:
- Pain
- Redness
- Irritation
- Blurry vision
- Watery eyes
- Inability to keep eye open
- Swelling (eye tissue or eyelids)
- Feeling something in the eye
If you’re exposed to a chemical irritant, you should flush your eye immediately. Then, call for help, either by booking an emergency eye appointment or making arrangements for emergency care.
Even if you successfully flush the chemical irritant from your eye, you should still visit your optometrist to assess your eye health. Some chemicals are more difficult to remove and can have longer effects. An eye exam after an emergency can help protect your eyes and vision.
Eye Emergencies: We’re Here to Help
If you experience an eye injury or a sudden change in vision, it’s important to act quickly. Contact us right away, and we’ll prioritize your needs, providing immediate guidance and care.
Our team is here to help assess the situation, offer support, and walk you through the necessary next steps to make sure your eye health is taken care of. Don’t hesitate—call us immediately for emergency assistance.
Why Trust Us? We’re Advocates for Eye Health & Vision Needs
Dr. Bishop & Associates is committed to providing care that can make a positive difference in your life.
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Dealing with scratchy, red, tired eyes can be frustrating—but we’re here to help. At our dry eye clinic, we take a comprehensive approach to diagnosing and managing dry eye, focusing on your unique symptoms and lifestyle. We aim to address the root cause to achieve long-lasting relief, including innovative treatments with noninvasive IPL and radiofrequency technology.
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We want you to feel confident in your skin. Our aesthetic services are designed to help renew and replenish your skin with minimally invasive treatments and no downtime. With AlumierMD skincare and IPL, radiofrequency, and laser rejuvenation technology, we’ll work with you to create a personalized plan to address your skin concerns and reveal your natural beauty.
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Nearsightedness (myopia) is on the rise, and it can have long-lasting impacts on your child, from their success in the classroom to their eye health later in life. Myopia management is a personalized, proactive approach to slowing myopia progression to help support your child’s sight today and protect their long-term eye health. Your child’s vision is our top priority.
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Willow Park Village
- 575 – 10816 Macleod Trail SE
- Calgary, AB T2J 5N8
- Phone: (403) 974-3937
- Fax: 403-509-4859
Legacy Township
- 230 – 200 Hartell Way SE
- Calgary, AB T2X 4S9
- Phone: (403) 974-3937
- Fax: 587-392-7365
Shoppes @ Beacon Hill
- 615 – 11877 Sarcee Trail NW
- Calgary, AB T3R 1W5
- Phone: (403) 974-3937
- Fax: 403-509-4854