The new coronavirus can also infect your eyes

Amy Norton
Health Day Reporter

Friday, October 9, 2020 (HealthDay News)-COVID-19 is primarily a respiratory tract infection, but experts suspect that the virus can also invade the eyes. Now scientists have more direct evidence of it.

The findings are based on Chinese patients with acute onset Glaucoma Attacks immediately after recovering from COVID-19. Her doctor had to have surgery to treat her condition, and tests of her eye tissue showed evidence of SARS-CoV-2.

This case provides evidence that “SARS-CoV-2 can infect eye tissue in addition to eye tissue.” Respiratory system, ”Doctors reported in the October 8 online version of the journal JAMA Ophthalmology..

“Eyes are suspected to be the cause of both” in “and” out. ” New coronavirusSaid Dr. Aaron Glatt, a spokesman for the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

As a result, healthcare professionals protect their eyes with goggles and face shields, he said.

According to Grat, it is impossible to tell through her eyes whether the patient was infected with SARS-CoV-2 in this case. But it’s possible-whether through virus particles in the air or by touching her eyes with virus-contaminated hands, he said.

Another big unknown is whether the virus remaining in the patient’s eye tissue causes problems.

According to Dr. Gracerichter Ophthalmologist “It’s too early to know what the virus’s presence in the eye means for eye health,” at the Roski Eye Institute at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles.

At this point, Richter said, limited Eye problems Found in COVID-19: A small number of patients develop conjunctivitis (“Pink eyes”), the white areas of the eyes and the inside of the eyelids are swollen, red and itchy.

The patient in this case had acute angle-closure glaucoma. This is a serious condition in which the intraocular pressure suddenly rises due to the accumulation of fluid. Prompt treatment is needed to relieve pressure, and sometimes surgery is needed to restore normal fluid movement in the eye.

Richter suspected that the coronavirus might have caused direct eye complications. In general, certain anatomical features of the eye make some people vulnerable to acute angle-closure glaucoma, which can be caused by drug therapy, she explained.

Richter speculated that the patient was likely to have been hospitalized and received a variety of medications, which could be the cause.

That’s possible, agreed with Dr. Sonal Turi, a clinical spokeswoman for the American Academy of Ophthalmology and chair of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Florida School of Medicine in Gainesville.

Turi said the patient’s case was “interesting,” but left many questions. One is whether the virus present in the tissues of the eye is actually infectious.

The patient was a 64-year-old woman who was hospitalized with COVID-19 on January 31st. Eighteen days later, her symptoms were completely resolved and her throat swab became negative for SARS-CoV-2.

But about a week later she felt pain and Vision loss Dr. Ying Yan and colleagues at the Central Theater Command General Hospital in Wuhan, China, reported that with one eye, and a few days later with the other.

The patient returned to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with acute angle-closure glaucoma and cataract. The doctor couldn’t reduce the intraocular pressure with the drug, so the doctor performed surgery. In the process, tissue samples were taken.

Testing of these samples revealed evidence that SARS-CoV-2 had invaded eye tissue, Yan’s team reported.

It is not clear how the virus entered the patient’s eyes, but experts agreed that the case emphasized the importance of eye protection. For healthcare providers, it means goggles and face shields. For the average person, it is regular hand washing and keeping away from the eyes.

“I don’t think people are aware of how often they see it,” Turi said.

She said the advice would reduce the chances of a virus, including a cold or flu bug, coming into contact with the eyes.

That may be sufficient in most cases, but Tuli suggested that those who care for someone who has a COVID-19 at home may want to be particularly cautious. She said it was a “good idea” to wear eye protection in addition to the mask.