Hyphema

The cornea is the clear cover on the front of your eye. The iris (the colored part of the eye) lies behind it. The space between them is called the anterior chamber. Sometimes an injury to your eye can cause bleeding in this space. The bleeding is known as hyphema.

When to Go to the Emergency Room (ER)

Hyphema is a medical emergency. Call your doctor or go to the nearest hospital. Symptoms include:

• Bleeding in the front part of your eye.

• Eye pain.

• Decreased vision (even a small amount of blood in the anterior chamber can make it hard to see).

What to Expect in the ER

• A doctor will perform a thorough eye exam, using a microscope with a bright light (slit lamp microscope).

• Your vision and the pressure within your eye will be checked. Mild hyphema may be treated at home with bed rest, eyedrops, and an eye shield. If bleeding is severe or eye pressure increases, you may be admitted to the hospital for treatment. Hyphema often goes away on its own in time. If not, you may have a procedure to remove the blood from your eye.

Follow-Up

If you're treated at home, you are likely to see your doctor each day for 3-5 days. You may then be checked several times over the next few weeks. This is crucial because bleeding may recur even after treatment, and other parts of your eye may have been injured if trauma caused the bleeding. Traumatic hyphema increases your chance of developing glaucoma (increased eye pressure). For this reason, you should have routine eye exams for the rest of your life.