Two children require medical attention after hand sanitiser caused severe eye injuries

Alexandra Thompson
·3 min read
Child using alcohol gel clean wash hand sanitizer anti virus bacteria dirty skin care
Good hand hygiene is key to warding off the coronavirus, however, alcohol-based gels could have unintended consequences. (Stock, Getty Images)

Doctors have described how two children required medical care after getting hand sanitiser in their eyes.

Good hand hygiene is one of the key strategies to warding off the coronavirus, with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stressing the gel must have at least a 60% alcohol content to kill the infection.

While people with skin conditions like eczema have long claimed the drying formulas exacerbate their symptoms, it is now emerging the alcohol-based rubs can cause problems if they get in children’s eyes.

Medics from the Grewal Eye Institute in Chandigarh, India, have reported how an unnamed four-year-old girl was brought in after she attempted to use a hand sanitiser dispenser in a shop.

The girl immediately developed severe light intolerance, with the doctors later discovering a “large defect in the central cornea”.

An unnamed five-year-old boy similarly developed pink eye and cornea damage one hour after getting hand sanitiser in his eyes.

Read more: Palliative care doctor describes working amid ‘exhausting’ pandemic

While both youngsters recovered, the Grewal medics have stressed “small children are at risk of severe ocular injury and possibly even blindness due to inadvertent ocular exposure to ABHR [alcohol-based hand rubs].”

This comes as scientists have revealed the number of “alcohol-based hand sanitiser eye exposures” among children being reported to the French Poison Control Centers rose by seven times between April and August 2020, compared to the same period in 2019.

Portrait of exhausted and tired asian boy rubbing his eyes.
Hand sanitiser in the eyes can cause irritation or even 'blindness' in severe cases, medics have warned. (Posed by a model, Getty Images)

“Small children are at risk of severe ocular injury and possibly even blindness due to inadvertent ocular exposure to ABHRs,” the Grewal medics wrote in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology.

“In most public places, the hand sanitisers are installed at a waist-level height of an adult but at eye level or above for a young child.”

Read more: Website calculates coronavirus transmission risk for given room

Ethanol – the chemical compound in alcohol – “is known to be highly toxic” to cells in the cornea, exerting an “immediate cytotoxic effect”.

“In both children in our case report, there were no long-term sequelae, but it is not hard to imagine a situation where care is delayed, increasing the chance of long-term corneal and ocular surface complications,” wrote the medics.

Watch: Can you catch coronavirus twice?

Upon arrival at the eye institute, the four-year-old girl’s right eyelid was swollen with an excessive amount of fluid.

She also showed signs of eye irritation and blood vessel restriction to the organ’s tissues.

The medics also picked up on “a large epithelial defect in the central cornea sparing a 2mm rim of peripheral corneal”.

The girl was treated via “copious irrigation with balanced salt solution”. She was then given a series of eye drops to use over several days.

Her corneal defect “healed completely”, while the blood vessel restriction “resolved in two weeks”.

Read more: COVID death risk nearly doubles when ICU capacity exceeds 75%

When the five-year-old boy arrived at the institute, medics diagnosed keratopathy; cornea damage due to dryness as a result of incomplete eyelid closure.

A “thorough saline wash” was carried out, followed by regular eye drops. His “ocular findings” resolved after five days.

Off the back of their case reports, the medics recommend children always be assisted by an adult when using hand sanitiser.

Regular hand washing with soap and water is also likely the safer option, and still effective against the coronavirus, they added.

Watch: What is long COVID?

Latest Stories

  • A push to teach gamblers which sport betting sites are legal

    A gambling industry group wants to teach consumers how to tell if a particular sports betting or online casino site is legal or not. Conscious Gaming, a nonprofit group associated with an online gambling technology firm, launched its Bettor Safe campaign this week to promote the advantages of licensed gambling sites, including consumer practices, and highlight the risks of unlicensed ones, including identify theft, or the outright theft of deposits. It also began state-specific campaigns in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, where research shows many customers are confused about what is a legal gambling site.

  • Federer 'pain free' ahead of Qatar Open, says never eyed retirement

    Roger Fedrer said retirement was never really an option during his battle with injury, insisting Sunday the pain was "completely under control" ahead of his return to competitive tennis at this week's Qatar Open.

  • Nepal Parliament, reinstated by high court, begins session

    After being reinstated by the nation's Supreme Court, Nepal’s Parliament began a session on Sunday that will likely determine the future of the prime minister and the government. The split in the ruling Nepal Communist Party has left Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli without the majority of votes in Parliament required for him to continue in office. Oli so far has refused to step down and is determined to continue.

  • Casting a wide intrusion net: Dozens burned with single hack

    The SolarWinds hacking campaign blamed on Russian spies and the “grave threat” it poses to U.S. national security are widely known. Nimble, highly skilled criminal hackers believed to operate out of Eastern Europe hacked dozens of companies and government agencies on at least four continents by breaking into a single product they all used. The victims include New Zealand’s central bank, Harvard Business School, Australia’s securities regulator, the high-powered U.S. law firm Jones Day — whose clients include former President Donald Trump — the rail freight company CSX and the Kroger supermarket and pharmacy chain. Also hit was Washington state's auditor’s office, where the personal data of up to 1.3 million people gathered for an investigation into unemployment fraud was potentially exposed.

  • Venezuela rations diesel supply to truckers as fuel shortages worsen

    Venezuelan state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela has begun rationing diesel to truckers, four transport sector sources told Reuters, as low domestic refining output and scarce imports amid U.S. sanctions squeeze fuel supplies. Frustrated truckers blocked a highway in the central state of Maracay in protest over the shortages on Friday, social media images showed. The diesel squeeze came after the country suffered widespread gasoline shortages throughout 2020, prompting President Nicolas Maduro to cut longstanding heavy subsidies and import gasoline from Iran.

  • Rescued baby monkey wants to help groom her friend

    Grooming is such an important part of social bonding among primates, that this little rescued vervet monkey couldn't resist when she saw me grooming this rescued blue monkey! These monkeys lost their mothers when they were very young, and are being rehabilitated at a Wildlife Center, where they'll stay until they have found a troop of their own, and can be released back into the wild. The Blue Monkey (Cercopithecus mitis), also known as Samango, belongs to the Cercopithecidae family of Old World Monkeys, the largest of all primate families, comprising 138 species of primates. The family includes the mandrill, drill, baboons, colobus, macaques, among many others. The genus Cercopithecus, generally referred to as Guenons, comprises 26 species, and 17 subspecies of Blue Monkey are recognized: Cercopithecus mitis opisthostictus, Cercopithecus mitis boutourlinii, Cercopithecus mitis albogularis, Cercopithecus mitis albotorquatus, Cercopithecus mitis stuhlmanni, Cercopithecus mitis doggetti, Cercopithecus mitis moloneyi, Cercopithecus mitis heymansi, Cercopithecus mitis erythrarchus, Cercopithecus mitis zammaronoi, Cercopithecus mitis kolbi, Cercopithecus mitis monoides, Cercopithecus mitis mitis, Cercopithecus mitis kandti, Cercopithecus mitis francescae, Cercopithecus mitis schoutedeni and Cercopithecus mitis labiatus. This species is widespread across Central, Southern and East Africa. It can be found in many different types of forest, such as lowland and montane tropical moist forest, riverine and gallery forest, delta forest, bamboo forest, sand forest, and even secondary forest, logged forest and thickets. Blue Monkeys are diurnal and arboreal, and live in groups of up to 40 individuals. They may form alliances with other monkey species, for added protection. They are mostly frugivorous and folivorous, so their diet consists mostly of fruits and leaves, but they also feed on slugs and worms. In spite of being widespread, this species suffers from habitat loss and hunting. The Vervet Monkey (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) is an Old World monkey, which means that it belongs to the Cercopithecidae family, the largest of all primate families, comprising 138 species of primates. The term "vervet" is used to refer to all members of the Chlorocebus genus, although it is still debated whether there are several species or only one, with several subspecies. They are native to the African continent, and can be found as far north as Egypt, and as far south as South Africa. They occupy savanna, open woodland, and forest-grassland mosaic, preferably close to rivers, being generally absent from desert areas and deep forest. It's a common and abundant species; flexible and easily adapted to secondary and highly fragmented vegetation, including cultivated areas and rural and urban environments, where it is often considered a pest, which gets them hunted and shot, causing many babies to become orphaned. In some areas, they become bushmeat. Vervet Monkeys live in large troops of up to 38 individuals, with one dominant male. The females are usually related to one another, but many unrelated males may be present. With a life-span of 10 to 11 years, females become sexually mature at age four, and males at age five. They breed from April to June, and a single offspring is born five months later.

  • Happy baby can't stop giggling at mommy's antics

    Playtime with mommy - what else can be more fun than that! Cuteness overload!

  • Pair of dachshunds go to town on tasty treats

    These two definitely licked the bowl clean! Too cute!

  • Vlhova wins giant slalom as Shiffrin stutters

    Slovakian Petra Vlhova turned the tables on Mikaela Shiffrin to win the World Cup giant slalom in Jasna on Sunday.

  • Rights groups call for investigation into killings of Philippine activists

    Human rights groups called on the Philippine government to investigate what they said was the use of "lethal force" during police raids on Sunday that left at least nine activists dead. The raids in four provinces south of Manila resulted in the death of an environmental activist as well as a coordinator of left-wing group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, among others, and resulted in the arrest of four others, activist groups said. "These raids appear to be part of a coordinated plan by the authorities to raid, arrest, and even kill activists in their homes and offices," Human Rights Watch Deputy Asia Director Phil Robertson said in a statement.

  • Britain's Labour calls government's health pay offer "reprehensible", steps up budget criticism

    Britain's opposition Labour Party called the government's pay offer to health workers "reprehensible" on Sunday and pledged to vote against its freeze on income tax thresholds, stepping up criticism of the budget. Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government set out its plans to help the economy weather the COVID-19 crisis last week, with finance minister Rishi Sunak promising to do "whatever it takes to support the British people and businesses". While Johnson enjoys a large majority in the lower house of parliament, his Conservative government's plans have come under fire for what critics say is its targeting of lower- and middle-income earners and not being generous enough to health workers, after a year of great strain battling the coronavirus pandemic.

  • Ahmad only possible obstacle to Motsepe becoming CAF president

    Only incumbent Ahmad Ahmad potentially stands in the way of South African billionaire and current sole candidate Patrice Motsepe becoming the eighth president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) this Friday.

  • Your Weekly Horoscope, March 7th to 13th: Expect Emotional Turbulence to Alter Your Reality

    You can blame the Pisces new moon for this.

  • Having Period Issues? Here's What a Naturopathic Doctor Suggests You Do

    "I think most of us simply learn nothing about hormones and move through life never knowing what signs would indicate an imbalance."

  • Swiss 'burqa ban' vote on a knife-edge

    Switzerland voted Sunday on whether to ban full facial coverings in public places, with the result on a knife-edge, according to early projections.

  • India sets up holding center for Rohingya in Kashmir

    Authorities in Indian-controlled Kashmir have sent at least 168 Rohingya refugees to a holding center, police said Sunday, in a process that they say is for the deportation of thousands of the refugees living in the region. The move began Saturday following a directive from the region’s home department to identify Rohingya living in the southern city of Jammu, said Inspector-General Mukesh Singh. “All of them are illegally living here and we have begun identifying them,” Singh said.

  • Burnley say defender Pieters abused online after Arsenal draw

    Arsenal felt they should have had a penalty when the ball hit second-half substitute Pieters' arm in the box and shortly afterwards he went close to putting his side ahead with a volley that was tipped over the bar by Bernd Leno. Pieters was then sent off for handball when he cleared a goalbound Nicolas Pepe shot in the penalty area but VAR overturned referee Andre Marriner's decision to show him a red card and award Arsenal a spot kick.

  • Raving for research, Dutch DJs perform for crowd

    Dance music lovers in the Netherlands have been raving in the name of research, at a first live gig in over a year.A total of 1,300 people enjoyed some musical relief at a carefully planned test event in Amsterdam's biggest music hall, the ZiggoDome, which in normal times has a capacity of up to 17,000.DJ Sunnery James told Reuters he was eager to get back behind the decks.“At the end of the day you want to play the records in a DJ booth, for people and share the energy. So how I miss it is like I feel like a kid now. I was jumping and screaming like walking in. So yeah, I can't wait to play."All guests needed to comply with Dutch public health guidelines for 48 hours in advance and had all their movements and contacts tracked through a tag they had to wear.They were divided into six groups, all with different guidelines on where they were allowed to go in the venue.Government advisers will use the data on their behavior to inform decisions on how to ease restrictions on mass gatherings in the coming months.The dance festival is part of a series of test events which also include a business conference, two soccer matches and a comedy show, all with different rules for different groups, to see what works best.

  • George Floyd's friends reflect on his striving, at times stumbling life

    Travis Cains looks over to the spot where he and George Floyd watched the world go by when they were young. It was on those steps that Cains — who considers himself Floyd's older brother and stuck with him through the highs of sports stardom at school to the lows of addiction and incarceration — became convinced that Floyd was destined to make his mark on the world. Floyd is a martyr for us.

  • Iran frees British-Iranian aid worker Zaghari-Ratcliffe, says lawyer

    Iran has released British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, removing her ankle tag after a five-year prison sentence, but she has been summoned again to court on another charge, her lawyer and a British lawmaker said on Sunday. She was jailed for plotting to overthrow the clerical establishment. Iran's judiciary was not immediately available to comment about the release.