What are the symptoms of photokeratitis?
If you have photokeratitis, you may experience one or more of the following symptoms:
Other symptoms include:
- Seeing halos.
- Headaches.
- Twitching of your eyelids.
- Temporary vision loss (rare).
- Color changes in your vision (rare).
The symptoms may last from six to 24 hours, but they usually disappear within 48 hours. The longer you’re exposed to UV light, the more severe your symptoms might be.
What causes photokeratitis?
Ultraviolet rays can damage your eyes. UV-A and UV-B rays from the sun can cause short- and long-term damage to your eyes and affect your vision. The ozone layer absorbs UV-C radiation, so those rays don’t damage your eyes.
Besides direct sunlight, other sources of ultraviolet light that can cause photokeratitis include:
- Sunlight that’s reflected into your eyes from snow, ice, water, sand or cement.
- Lamps used in tanning beds or booths.
- Laser light.
- Mercury vapor lamps or halogen desk lamps.
- Lightning or electric sparks.
- Arc welding equipment or photographic flood lamps.
- Light used to disinfect or used as medical treatment.
Staring directly at the sun, such as during a solar eclipse, can cause more long-lasting and considerable damage — a burn — to your retina.
What are the risk factors for photokeratitis?
You’re at greater risk of getting photokeratitis if you:
- Spend a lot of time outdoors in the sun, doing activities like mountain climbing, hiking, skiing swimming.
- Use a sunlamp, tanning bed or work or spend time in environments where there’s a UV light source.
- Live in higher altitudes (greater exposure to UV rays) or in the U.S. sunbelt, which is the southern part of the country below the 36th parallel.
What are the complications of photokeratitis?
Long-term exposure to even small amounts of UV radiation can increase your risk of developing a cataract or macular degeneration. UV exposure adds up over time. Long-term UV exposure can also cause tissue elevations on the surface of your eye. These are called pingueculae and pterygia. Using sunglasses faithfully when outdoors may limit these.
Blue and violet shorter-wavelength visible light, emitted from LED lights, computers and smartphones, can also be harmful to your retina and be a risk factor for macular degeneration later in life.
FAQs
Photokeratitis, also known as snow blindness or welder's arc, is a painful, superficial, punctate keratopathy caused by acute exposure to UVR. Symptoms include tearing, ocular redness and pain, photophobia, swollen eyelids, headache, halos around lights, blurred vision, and temporary loss of vision.
What does photokeratitis feel like? ›
Anywhere from 30 minutes to 12 hours after an exposure to a source, patients will usually present with bilateral eye pain, photophobia, decreased vision, tearing, and will often have facial or eyelid erythema related to the UV exposure as well.
How long does photokeratitis last for? ›
The symptoms may last from six to 24 hours, but they usually disappear within 48 hours. The longer you're exposed to UV light, the more severe your symptoms might be.
What is the damage of photokeratitis? ›
Photokeratitis is a condition that occurs following unprotected exposure to ultraviolet radiation. It is characterised by damage to corneal epithelial cells and delayed onset of symptoms. It results from exposure to UVB (290 to 320nm) or UVC (100 to 290nm).
What is another name for photokeratitis? ›
Photokeratitis is known by a number of different terms including: snow blindness, arc eye, welder's flash, bake eyes, corneal flash burns, flash burns, niphablepsia, or keratoconjunctivitis photoelectrica.
How do you fix photokeratitis? ›
Treatments. Photokeratitis usually resolves on its own within one to two days. Treatment for this condition typically centers around reducing symptoms so you can feel more comfortable. If you suspect that you have sunburned eyes, your doctor may recommend pain relievers or antibiotic eye drops.
How do I know if my eyes are photosensitive? ›
If you have a sensitivity to light, you may: Squint or blink a lot. Put your hands up to shield your eyes from light. Prefer to stay inside on sunny days or prefer to go out after dusk.
Is sun damage to eyes reversible? ›
Fortunately, your eyes can heal from sun damage. If you have photokeratitis, you might just need a few days. However, keep in mind that more serious conditions, such as cataracts, can be harder to reverse. For those who suspect an eye disease or another severe eye issue, contact your eye doctor right away.
What is a welders' eye? ›
A flash burn occurs when you are exposed to bright ultraviolet (UV) light. It can be caused by all types of UV light, but welding torches are the most common source. That's why it's sometimes called 'welder's flash' or 'arc eye'. Flash burns are like sunburn in the eye and can affect both your eyes.
What is the prognosis for photokeratitis? ›
The exposure may not be initially apparent to the patient, as there is a latent period (6 to 12 hours) between exposure and onset of symptoms. Although intensely painful, photokeratitis is generally a self-limited condition with complete resolution.
In order to give your eyes the best possible protection, choose a wrap-around style that fits closely to your face. Polarized lenses don't protect your eyes from the sun's rays, but they do reduce glare – giving you clearer vision.
What does sun damaged eyes feel like? ›
If you have damaged retina(s), your vision might seem different for a while. You could experience eye soreness or pain, light sensitivity or other vision changes. You could see temporary eye floaters or flashers immediately after looking at the sun, a welding torch or a laser pointer.
Does keratitis go away? ›
A very mild case of noninfectious keratitis will usually heal on its own. For mild cases, your eye doctor may recommend that you use artificial tear drops. If your case is more severe and includes tearing and pain, you may need to use antibiotic eye drops to help with symptoms and prevent infection.
What is the emergency medicine for UV keratitis? ›
Emergency Department Care
Use of a bland ointment (eg, Lacrilube) may help reduce pain. Ointments may interfere with healing in severe corneal injuries. Many practitioners administer topical antibiotic ointment or drops (eg, erythromycin or gentamicin).
What is the difference between conjunctivitis and photokeratitis? ›
Inflammation of your cornea is called keratitis. Your conjunctiva is a clear, thin tissue that covers your sclera (the white part of your eyes) and also lines the inside of your eyelids. Inflammation of your conjunctiva is called pink eye (conjunctivitis).
What is the difference between dry eyes and photokeratitis? ›
Dry eyes occur when there is an insufficient amount of tears or a disruption in tear composition, leading to discomfort and potential damage to the eye surface. On the other hand, photokeratitis, commonly known as sunburned eyes, is caused by overexposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation.
What is the onset of photokeratitis? ›
Acute effects of UVR can occur during travel. Photokeratitis is a painful, superficial, punctate keratopathy caused by acute exposure to UVR. This disorder usually appears up to 6 h after UVR exposure.
What does UV poisoning feel like? ›
Sun poisoning symptoms can appear a few hours after exposure and include extreme inflammation of the skin, blisters, headache, nausea, dehydration, and fever.
