Black Eye Treatment

Self-Care at Home

Rest and ice applied early after the injury help to decrease swelling and pain.

• Ice helps to decrease swelling by constricting blood vessels, by decreasing fluid accumulation, and by cooling and numbing the area.

• Apply ice for 20 minutes an hour every hour while awake, for the first 24 hours. Ice should not be applied directly to the injury.
  
  
• To avoid potential cold injury to the site, wrap the ice in a cloth or use a commercial ice pack. A bag of frozen vegetables wrapped in a cloth makes a good ice pack.

• Protect the area from further injury. Avoid athletic or other possibly injurious activities until the eye has healed.

• Do not put a steak or a piece of raw meat on a black eye. No scientific evidence supports this treatment. Putting potentially bacteria-laden meat on a mucous membrane or an open skin injury can be dangerous.

Medical Treatment

For simple, uncomplicated black eyes, the treatment prescribed is similar to home treatment: ice, pain medications (avoid aspirin-unless prescribed by a doctor or cardiologist for a heart condition - because this may increase bleeding), rest, and protection of the injured area.

For more complicated injuries, the patient may be referred to an appropriate specialist:

• A neurosurgeon for injuries to the skull or the brain
  
  
• An ophthalmologist for injuries to the eye itself
  
  
• An otorhinolaryngologist [ear, nose, and throat (ENT)] for fractures to the face
  
  
• A plastic surgeon to repair serious cuts to the face