According to a study, about one in 10 people hospitalized for a coronavirus showed white spots on the retina.
However, these pathological changes subsided after three months, a Swiss research team from Geneva reported in the Journal of Clinical Medicine.
The researchers examined the eyes of 172 hospitalized patients who suffered respiratory distress due to Sars-CoV-2 infection. According to the study, eleven percent showed retinal damage, which manifested as white spots. These were due to occlusion of the small arteries, triggered by an embolism or inflammation. Lead author Gordana Sunaric Mégevand said in a news release from the University Hospital of Geneva (HUG).
Such white spots are known mainly for diabetes or high blood pressure people. However, the present study showed that retinal damage was primarily due to the viral infection.
Three months later, the white spots had disappeared in all patients at a follow-up examination, and the scientists observed no lasting visual disturbances.
According to them, the mechanisms of how Sars-CoV-2 causes retinal damage are not yet well understood. Therefore, possible causes could be oxygen deficiency or direct tissue damage by the virus.
- source: k.at/picture: pixabay.com
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