Post-Operative Eye Surgery Care at Home
- Keep the eye patch on as instructed by your doctor.
- Clean the eye, use eye drops, and apply eye ointment exactly as prescribed.
- Avoid the following:
- Coughing or sneezing. If you need to, open your mouth wide and take deep breaths instead.
- Rubbing, touching, or squeezing your eyes tightly.
- Intense emotions or stress.
- Lifting heavy objects.
- Straining during bowel movements.
Avoiding these activities is crucial because they can increase intraocular pressure, which may damage the eye.
- Get plenty of rest and avoid strenuous work.
- Engage only in light exercise, such as gentle walking.
- Eat easily digestible foods, including fruits and vegetables, to prevent constipation.
- Avoid smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages (liquor, beer, etc.).
- Maintain good personal hygiene.
- Do not purchase or use eye drops on your own. If you experience abnormal symptoms—such as severe eye or socket pain, or if your vision becomes significantly blurrier—consult your doctor immediately.
- Attend all follow-up appointments as scheduled.
How to Clean Your Eye
After surgery, if your doctor allows the eye patch to be removed for medication, you should clean the eye once a day before applying eye drops or whenever there is significant discharge.
Supplies
- Sterile eye cleansing solution
- Sterile cotton balls
- Eye patch and medical tape
4-Step Eye Cleaning Process
Step 1: Wash your hands thoroughly with soap.
Step 2: Moisten 4 cotton balls with the cleansing solution. Squeeze them so they are damp, not dripping.
Ball 1: Wipe the eyebrow area and the cheekbone.
Ball 2: Wipe the upper and lower eyelids.
Ball 3: Wipe the upper eyelid margin gently. Ask the patient to look down, and wipe from the inner corner (near the nose) toward the outer corner. Do not wipe back and forth.
Ball 4: Wipe the lower eyelid margin gently. Ask the patient to look up, and wipe from the inner corner toward the outer corner.
Step 3: After cleaning, apply eye drops as prescribed by the doctor.
Step 4: Ask the patient to close their eye first before applying the eye patch. Once the patch is secured, the patient may open their eye. (This prevents the patch from touching the cornea).
