Repair of Perforating Injuries of Cornea and Sclera Treatment in India

James Jones, a 58-year-old retired carpenter,...

James Jones, a 58-year-old retired carpenter, was working on a home renovation project in his garage. While using a nail gun, a metal shard ricocheted off a piece of hardwood and struck his right eye. He experienced immediate, severe pain, blurred vision, and a sensation of fluid leaking from his eye. Rushed to the emergency room, an ophthalmologist diagnosed a perforating injury to both his cornea and sclera, the white of his eye, with a high risk of infection and permanent vision loss. The doctor urgently recommended surgical repair to close the wounds, remove the foreign body, and preserve the eye's structure. James underwent surgery under general anesthesia, where the surgeon meticulously sutured the corneal and scleral lacerations. The post-operative recovery was challenging, involving strict face-down positioning for several days to help a gas bubble placed in the eye support the repair, along with a regimen of antibiotic and anti-inflammatory eye drops. After three months, his eye had healed well structurally, though he was left with a central corneal scar that reduced the vision in that eye to 20/200, making him legally blind on that side. Emotionally, James grappled with fear of blindness and anger over the freak accident, mourning the loss of his detailed woodworking hobby. While adjusting to monocular vision was difficult, he felt profound gratitude that his eye was saved from removal and found new purpose in teaching safety workshops at his local hardware store.