TIPS to opening a Champagne bottle
without hurting your eye

Even this “strange” year is going to finish (and I cannot wait, by the way) and Champagne signals a time of celebration — but opening bubbly can come with some risks. A Champagne cork can fly up to 80 km/h as it leaves the bottle — fast enough to shatter glass. If the cork hits an eye, it can cause a lot problems, such as:

• anterior chamber hyphema
• corneal injury
• ocular hypertension
• lens subluxation
• traumatic cataract
• post-traumatic retinal edema
• pupil motility anomalies
• traumatic cataract
• iridodialysis
• traumatic optic neuropathy
• post-traumatic glaucoma
• traumatic maculopathy

 

If you do sustain an eye injury from a champagne cork, go immediate to an ophthalmologist.

Avoid an eye injury by following these TIPS:

• Keep the Champagne cold
• Don’t shake, rattle, or point the bottle towards anyone.
• Control the cork.
• Tear off the foil then remove the wire hood. Place the other hand over the top of the bottle and grasp the cork. Point the bottle at a 45-degree angle away from yourself and any bystanders. Slowly and firmly twist the bottle not the cork. Do this until the pressure in the bottle begins to push the cork out naturally.

As COVID-19 cases and deaths continue to be at an all-time high, keep your holiday celebrations smaller, limited to immediate household members. And make sure your at-home celebrations are safe from sight-threatening eye injuries.

 

 

FONTS: AAO