What Are the Dangers of Using Ear Drops in the Eye?

Placing ear drops in your eye accidentally may burn and sting right away, it can also cause, blurriness, redness and swelling, but for the most part it is not dangerous. In most cases the symptoms are temporary and will go away.

Why the Mix Up

Eye and ear drops

Both ear drops and eye drops come in liquid form, and the bottles that they are stored in look the same.

Otic Versus Optic

Ear.

The confusion not only comes from both medicines being liquid and packaged in the same type of bottle, but the word otic is very similar to optic. Otic is the medical term for ear and optic is the medical term for eye.

Ingredients

Irritated eyes

The active ingredients in many ear drops tends to be the same ingredients in eye drops. The difference is that the eye tissue is much more sensitive than the ear, so many of the eye drops are made to be gentle and pH balanced for the eye.

Treatment

Water.

If you do put ear drops in your eye, gently rinse the eye out with sensitive eye drops or flush the eye with cold water. The important thing to remember is to be gentle with the eye and don't rub or irritate the eye any further.

Prevention

Keep in original boxes.

The biggest problem in mixing up the prescriptions is when you take them out of the box. Always place the drops back in the box with the instructions. Take precaution by storing the ear drops and eye drops in different locations. Always throw away old drops or any left over medication.

References

• Net Doctor: Betnesol eye/ear/nose drops 1 & 2
• Consumer Med Safety: Ear drops in eyes a painful mistake

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish