“I accidentally got eye makeup remover in my eyes and it is burning in spite of using water on them. What should I do now?”
I was clearing off my eye make up with a creamy make up remover, however it went into my eyes. It is now burning in spite of repeatedly washing it with water. What can I do to get rid of this?
10 Answers
It is important to flush your eyes immediately for at least 20 minutes with water or sterile saline solution. If you have symptoms of pain or loss of vision it is important to contact your ophthalmologist right away.
Patient probably has either a corneal abrasion or punctate keratopathy requiring staining by ophthalmologist to make diagnosis and treat appropriately
Please wash it out with tap water. If it still hurts, please see an eye MD.
Continue rinsing it with water for 15 minutes, then get nonpreserved tears and use every 15 minutes. If it continues burning, see an eyecare doctor. You probably have a chemical conjunctivitis and may also have corneal abrasion.
Go see an ophthalmologist immediately.
You can flush your eyes with a saline eyewash, which will be more soothing than water. If the irritation and burning persist, you may have a chemical burn to the lining of the eyes the conjunctiva, so may need to go to your ophthalmologist or to the ER.
Beth R. Friedland, M.D.
Beth R. Friedland, M.D.
Use some lubricant eye drops or over-the-counter lubricant eye ointment. If it doesn't get better, see an eye doctor; you might have gotten an abrasion while trying to wash your eyes.
The burning is aggravated by water. Unless it is an acid or strong alkali and time is of the essence, use a balanced solution such as contact lens solutions or artificial tears. A therapeutic eye such as erythromycin or bacitracin can also be helpful. Do not use gentamicin or neosporin ointments as they can cause other problems compounding the symptoms.
Copious lubrication is what is most important. After thoroughly rinsing them, add 1/2 inch of a lubricant ophthalmic ointment, such as Refresh PM, TheraTears Ointment, GenTeal Ointment, Systane Ointment, or Lacrilube. Check with the manufacturer of the makeup remover...if it had an alkaline pH or surfactants in it, you should see an eye care specialist or go to an Urgent Care center
You may have caused an eye abrasion. If it hurts you, see an eye doctor.
