Sight & Hearing

May 2001

Paintball: A pain in the eye

It's played in more than 40 countries and has a million devotees in North America alone. The game? Paintball.

So what is it? Paintball is a war-game sport played with guns that can shoot paint-filled pellets over 200 miles per hour. Players try to eliminate opponents from the game by shooting them with the paintballs. Often, the game is played in a commercial setting, where safety gear chest protectors, neck guards and "Star Wars"-style masks -- is required.

Many eye injuries have occurred though, especially in outdoor recreational settings, because players either choose not to wear eye protection or remove the mask to clean it during the game.

Eye injuries caused by paintballs accounted for four percent of the total number of cases on the United States Eye Injury Registry between 1996 and 1998. Before 1996, there were no eye injuries attributed to paintball. In 1999, the Minnesota Academy of Ophthalmology reported 22 cases of eye injuries from paintball.

If you're a paintball enthusiast or know someone who is, keep the following tips in mind:
1) Always wear eye protection. The American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM) has established manufacturer's guidelines for 2.5-mm minimum thickness polycarbonate lenses to be used when playing paintball.
2) Don't remove the goggles or facemask during the game. Most eye injuries happen when the goggles are covered with paint and are taken off to be cleaned during the middle of the game.