Plugging the hole now could save problems later KeystoneUSA-ZUMA/REX/Shutterstock

A smart glue may safely fill cuts in the outer eyeball in emergency situations, keeping the wound safe until proper treatment is available.

In battlefield situations or remote locations, people who sustain eyeball injuries may not be able to find someone capable of the skilled microsurgery they need to stitch up their wound. The longer they go without, the more likely they are to get an infection or suffer a detachment of the retina, due to lower eyeball pressure.

“Each day that no intervention is taken, the risk of permanent vision loss increases,” says …