A foreign body is something such as an eyelash, sawdust, sand, or dirt can that gets into the eyes. The main symptom is irritation or pain.

If anything is stuck in your eye for more than a period of a couple of hours, you must immediately cease all attempts to remove it yourself. Keep in mind that the eyes are an extremely delicate organ and any attempts to try anything extra ordinary with them can only have negative and adverse results. If a foreign body you are talking about is not bothering you too much, then you are advised to visit an eye doctor to take care of it. If not you may need to call to emergency service of your region.

If there is a foreign body in your eye, such as a piece of grit, your eye doctor may try and remove it. They will put anaesthetic eye drops in your eye first, in order to numb it and prevent any pain.

If the foreign body is easy to get to, it may be possible to remove it by simply rinsing your eye with water, or by wiping it away with a cotton wool bud or triangle of card. However, if this is unsuccessful, your eye doctor may try and remove the foreign body by lifting it out with the tip of a small metal instrument.

The foreign body could be stuck underneath your upper eyelid, especially if you can feel something there, or you have scratches or grazes (abrasions) on the top half of the transparent outer layer of your eye (cornea). If this is the case, it may be necessary to gently turn your eyelid inside out in order to remove the foreign body.

Once the anaesthetic eye drops have worn off, your eye may feel a bit uncomfortable until your abrasion heals.

Injury to the eye may cause bleeding, a change in the size of the pupil, a film over the eye lens, decreased vision, or vision changes. These objects may be deep in the eye and need to be removed by an eye specialist (ophthalmologist).

Immediate medical care is needed to remove certain objects from the eye safely and to protect the eye from further damage and infection.

But you can try to remove this foreign body by yourself in that time when your eye doctor comes.

1. Treatment For Numerous Particles (such as dirt or sand):

• Clean around the eye with a wet washcloth first.
• Then open and close the eye repeatedly while submerging that side of the face in a pan of water.
• If it doesn’t help, fill a glass or pitcher with warm tap water.  Pour the water into the eye while holding your face up. The eyelids must be held open during the irrigation.

2. Treatment for a Particle in a Corner of the Eye:

• Try to get it out with a moistened cotton swab, the corner of a moistened cloth, or a small piece of Scotch tape.

3. Treatment for a Particle Under the Lower Lid:

• Pull the lower lid out by depressing the skin above the cheekbone.
• Touch the particle with a moistened cotton swab.
• If that doesn’t work, try pouring water on the speck while holding the lid out.

4. Treatment for a Particle Under the Upper Lid:

• If the particle can’t be seen, it’s probably under the upper lid, the most common hiding place.
• Try open and close the eye several times while it is submerged in a pan or bowl of water.  If you have an eye cup, use it.
• If this fails, pull the upper lid out and draw it over the lower lid.  This maneuver, and tears, will sometimes dislodge the particle.

Whatever is happening with your eyes or if you suffer or even suspect that a foreign body has penetrated the outer eye layer better go without delay to the nearest treatment center at work, your doctor, or ophthalmologist. Doing nothing can lead to loss of vision, premature cataracts and damage to the retina so do not take any chances, delay is dangerous.