BMJ
Cheers not tears: Ocular trauma due to champagne corks
The pressure in a 750 mL bottle of champagne or sparkling wine is about three times that of a standard car tire, with the potential to launch a cork up to 13 m at speeds of up to 80 km/hr [50 mph]. A cork can travel from bottle to eye in less than 0.05 seconds, making the blinking reflex ineffective. A cork hitting an eye can cause permanent blindness, retinal detachment, and lens dislocation, among other conditions.
A 2009 review of 34 cases of eye injuries caused by bottle corks and caps from sparkling wine bottles in Italy showed that these seemingly innocuous objects can cause substantial harm to the eye, resulting in various degrees of visual impairment and clinical outcomes such as perforation, trauma, and long-term complications.
- This study found that all patients presented with closed globe injury with early injuries including anterior chamber hyphema (figure), corneal injury, ocular hypertension, lens subluxation, traumatic cataract formation (early and late), and post-traumatic retinal edema.
- Late complications included pupil motility anomalies, iridodialysis, traumatic optic neuropathy and maculopathy, and post-traumatic glaucoma.
- Perforating injuries involving bottle corks or caps risk vision impairment. After such an injury, personalized management from an eye care specialist is needed, and prompt consultation with an ophthalmologist is essential to minimize the risk of vision impairment.
The American Academy of Ophthalmology has a public safety campaign, “Uncork with Care,” (1) that gives practical tips for safely uncorking fizz bottles due to the “serious, potentially blinding eye injuries” that occur every year. We offer some suggestions to mitigate ophthalmic risks during toasts, in line with guidance from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. (1) Let us toast to an excellent new year, keep the bubbly in our glass, and the sparkle in our eyes.
Source:
(2023, Dec. 20).Excerpted from BMJ 2023, 383:p2520. Cheers not tears: Champagne corks and eye injury. https://www.bmj.com/content/383/bmj.p2520/rr
1. Flying champagne corks cause serious, blinding eye injuries each year. American Academy of Ophthalmology. 2012. https://www.aao.org/newsroom/news-releases/detail/ophthalmologists-warn-flying-champagne-corks-cause