Solar retinopathy is damage to the retina brought on by extreme and prolonged light exposure.
Theretinais the layer of tissue in the back of the eye that is most sensitive to light.
This key in of eye injury is often associated with sun or solar eclipse viewing.
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However, other factors can cause this jot down of eye injury as well.
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Symptoms
Solar retinopathy can occur in both eyes or only one eye.
However, in some cases, there may be permanent damage.
Causes
Solar retinopathy is usually because of staring directly into the sun or watching a solar eclipse.
The retina is very sensitive to light, and it becomes injured when exposed to excessively bright light.
Even a short amount of direct sun radiation can cause damage to the eye.
People who regularly sunbathe are at increased risk.
A torn or detached retina needs emergency attention and must be treated promptly to avoid permanent eye damage.
Treatment
Treatment for solar retinopathy usually means waiting for your symptoms to improve over time.
Your eye doctor will likely refer you to a retina specialist to monitor your condition.
They will likely schedule follow-up appointments with you to monitor your recovery progress.
Also, avoid looking directly at the sun at all times.
However, recovery can take several weeks to over a year, depending on the level of retinal damage.
In some cases, people never fully recover their vision, although this outcome is rare.
The most common approach is to wait it out and see how retinal damage affects your vision over time.
Summary
In most cases, solar retinopathy is a preventable eye injury.
People have experienced retinal injuries after looking directly into bright light for just a few seconds.
If you do experience any unusual changes to your vision, contact an eye doctor for an exam.
Fortunately, most cases of solar retinopathy improve in time.
But some cases have long-term damage.
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