Coronavirus and Your Eyes

How can Coronavirus affect your eyes?

The coronavirus can spread through your eyes, just as it does through your nose or mouth. When someone who has coronavirus coughs or sneezes, virus particles spray from their mouth or nose onto your face. You may then breathe these tiny droplets in through your nose or mouth. The virus can also enter your body through your eyes. You can also become infected by touching your eyes after touching something that has the virus on it.

It may be possible for the viru to cause pink eye infection (conjunctivitis), but this is extremely rare. At this time, we do not believe that coronavirus causes chalazions or other eyelid conditions.

Protecting Your Eyes

Covering your eyes with glasses or a face shield can help to slow the spread of coronavirus. Here are some ways to keep your eyes safe and healthy.

If you wear contact lenses try switching to glasses for a while. Contact lens wearers touch their eyes more often than the average person. So consider wearing glasses for a while especially when you are out of the house. Also wearing glasses may add a layer of protections. But remember that glasses do not provide 100% security. If you are caring for a sick person consider wearing goggles or a face shield.

Avoid rubbing your eyes. Especially as allergy season gets into full swing, it can be hard to not rub your eyes. If you feel the urge to rub your eyes, consider using a tissue instead of your fingers. Dry eyes can also lead to more rubbing, so consider adding an artificial tear drop to your routine. There are also many good over the counter allergy drops that can help to stop the itch. If you must touch your eyes, first wash your hands with soap and water, and then wash them again after touching them.

If you have other questions or concerns please reach out to my office. I am currently seeing urgent patient issues in the office and also doing remote consultation.

Call us at (212) 832-5456
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