'Why do my eyes hurt?': Visits to eye doctors and online searches surge following total solar eclipse
Despite all the warnings to not look at the phases of the total solar eclipse without safety glasses, queries about eye damage spiked after the April 8 total solar eclipse.
Google Trends showed a literal spike in searches for "Why do my eyes hurt?", "I see spots", and "Why do I have a headache?" immediately after the eclipse.
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If you compare the states and metro areas where most of the searches came from and the path of totality, they match quite well. Vermont, Ohio, Indiana and Arkansas all showed peak interest in "headache after eclipse" searches and all were in the path of totality.
That doesn't surprise doctors who saw concerned patients in the days following the eclipse.
"Part of the reason that the eclipse is so dangerous is because some of the sun's rays are blocked so it actually is much more tolerable than it would otherwise be," said Talia Kaden, an ophthalmologist and assistant professor at the Manhattan Ear, Eye and Throat Hospital in New York City. "And so you're able to stare at it for longer and as a result, have more issues."
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FOX News Medical Contributor and family and emergency medicine physician Janette Neshweiwat said patients came in without appointments complaining of headache, eye pain, blurry vision and nausea.
"I had several rush in to be seen," Nesheiwat said. "They told me they were not wearing protective eyeglasses. I know what you are thinking -- I was thinking the same thing, but I took the opportunity to educate them."
Eye damage from the sun, solar retinopathy, is permanent and not reversible, so she could only treat the symptoms.
"I treated my patients with pain meds acetaminophen (Tylenol), nausea meds, Zofran and eye drops/ointment for relief," Neshweit said.
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She referred all patients with damage to ophthalmologists, but most of the specialists were booked up within an hour, she said.
"All my patients were able to get an appointment, but they had to wait a few days and if their symptoms were severe or worsened they went to the ER," she continued. "Most of my patients had mild symptoms."
Kaden said that she has seen several patients complaining of eye pain, spots and blurred vision after the eclipse, but she has yet to see a case of solar retinopathy from Monday.
"I think most people are coming in with other miscellaneous concerns (that they fear is from the eclipse) that they're just more aware of," Kaden said. "So, lots of dry eye, and some patients who actually do have some underlying issues, that they are now kind of more attuned to."
She was surprised she didn't see more patients after the eclipse. Most called the office with questions before the event.
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"We had a lot of questions leading up to the eclipse, including day of," she said. "In the subsequent few days, there are some folks who have called with concerns. I do think that it was kind of remarkable, though. We were anticipating a lot more calls afterward, and we realize the bulk of them beforehand."
She feels more patients heeded the warning about safety glasses than during the 2017 eclipse, which crossed from coast-to-coast.
"I can remember after 2017, there were many, many more people, people who called afterwards and came in to be seen. And we've only seen a few this week," she continued. "So I think, I don't know if it's that people remember the last one, and so they knew what to do or there was better education for the public."
She urges anyone with concerns and symptoms to visit a doctor, but the likelihood of developing symptoms of solar retinopathy after three days is slim.
"The most common symptom that people are going to have is going to be a change in central vision. And that's usually within a few hours of exposure," Kaden said. "So what you might describe as a blind spot, and often it's in both eyes because you're looking obviously with both eyes. But you can also have a change in color. You can see distortion."
If you think you suffered an injury and are waiting to see your doctor, go easy on the eyes.
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"After the injury, I tell them to wear sunglasses with 100% UV protection to avoid further injury to the eye and to avoid straining eyes by excessive reading/electronic use," Nesheiwat advised. "Use drops/ointment, avoid makeup/rubbing eyes and stay hydrated."
"I personally will probably not look at an eclipse again after I saw the recall on the solar glasses," Nesheiwat said. "It is just not worth it to me."
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