Severe corneal burn due to the accidental application of salicylic acid packed in a plastic dropper bottle

• Published in: Biomédica
• Main Authors: Virgilio Galvis, Alejandro Tello, Néstor I. Carreño, Camilo A. Niño, Natalia A. García, Valeria Otoya, Rodrigo Arana
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; Spanish
• Published: Instituto Nacional de Salud 2020
• Subjects: cornea; corneal opacity; burns; chemical; limbus corneae; epithelium; corneal; bowman’s membrane; Medicine; R; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.7705/biomedica.5284; https://doaj.org/article/31ffebecc34b42d5abd686802ed19b2f

Eye burns due to the accidental application of pharmacological or nonpharmacological substances packaged in plastic dropper bottles have been described for more than three decades and continue to occur. These burns can cause potentially serious corneal injuries. We report the case of a patient who mistakenly applied salicylic acid to the right eye after confusing it with an eye lubricant, which caused him a severe corneal burn. Fortunately, after aggressive medical and surgical management (including oxygen therapy and amniotic membrane grafting), the visual results were good. We suggest conducting educational campaigns and taking legislative measures in our country to avoid packaging corrosive substances in this type of dropper bottle to reduce the risk of accidental burns.