Eye injuries by crackers darken the festival of light

BENGALURU: Hardly did Anand J (name changed) know his fun filled Diwali would turn into a mess this year. The 10-year-old was busy bursting crackers with his friends and family when a pataka hit his eyes and in the next few minutes, he howled in pain. The bright diyas and twinkling fairy lights vanished and everything seemed dark.
“When Anand was rushed to our hospital, he was found to have a retinal tear.The cracker blew with a speed that detached his retina from its underlying layer. He had to be immediately operated as it could have left him visionless if the retina remained detached for long,” said Dr Shilpa YD, the duty doctor at Minto Eye Hospital.
Although incessant rains in the city had left most of the crackers damp and kept children away from bursting them like previous years, Minto Eye Hospital in Chamarajpet has registered 20 patients aged 7 to 10 years with injuries to eyes by crackers. 27 total eye injury cases have been dealt with in five opthamology units in the city.
“Out of 20 patients, three had to be admitted. Anand had undergone an operation, while two others, 7-year-old Mohit and 8-year-old Bhuana sustained internal haemorrhage in their eyes, being injured while bursting crackers. They are undergoing treatment,” added Dr Shilpa.
Five patients with eye injury had come to Samprathi Eye hospital and Squint Centre, out of which a 53-year-old bystander has been critically injured and he might lose his vision.
Dr Arun Samprathi, opthamologist said, “The other three patients aging 4,7 and 11years have sustained minor injuries and corneal burns. A 35-year-old man was hit in his eye by crackers that his neighbours burnt. He have developed iritis with multiple inflammations and burns in his eyes. The worst affected was another 53-year-old bystander who was hit by a rocket blown by neighbouring children. the rocket broke his glasses and his cornea and lens have come out. Although he had undergone immediate surgery, he has very poor vision right now.”
Apart from Minto Hospital, other eye clinics across Bengaluru have treated kids with eye injuries due to crackers in the first two days of the festive week. Vijaya Nethralaya and Bangalore Nethralaya at Kalyan Nagar have treated one patient each, although they expect more patients to drop in by the end of the Diwali week. 3-year-old Hemanya and 11-year-old Arnav Ajay were released from the respective clinics after preliminary treatment.
“There are three aspects of injuries to eye by crackers. One is heat or fire. The other is the force with which it hits the eye. The last is the chemical nature of the cracker, which causes immense damage. Indeed any given injury is a mixture of all these three, in various proportions. Commonest causes are the bombs and patakis, which blast on lighting. Other common injuries are due to poor quality flower pots which blast, bhoo chakras and rockets. Some children cover a mud pot or a tin can or a Diya over a blasting cracker, and the broken pieces of the pot can be really sharp missiles,” said Dr MS Ravindra, opthamologist, chairman and medical director of Karthik Netralaya.
Bystanders at risk to injuries
“Apart from bunch of children and hot blooded youngsters playing around with crackers, unsupervised and competing among themselves, the bystanders are the worst affected as they are unaware of the injuries,” said Dr Ravindra.
He added: “Elders, pregnant women, those with Asthma, and those with heart problem and high blood pressures and even animals just hate the environmental pollution in terms of noise and smoke. The best way to celebrate Diwali to avoid injuries is to avoid crackers.”