Pattern of ophthalmic manifestations among COVID-19 survivors attending eye clinic in a tertiary care centre

Abstract

Background: Almost every organ of the body including the eye can be affected in post-acute coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) syndrome. Objective: To describe the pattern of ocular manifestations among recovered COVID-19 patients. Materials and Methods: An observational cross sectional study was conducted in the department of ophthalmology by recruiting patients who had recovered from COVID-19 and had attended eye clinic between 1 April 2021 and 30 June 2021. Comprehensive ophthalmological examination was performed in all participants. Results: A total 85 patients were enrolled (53 males and 32 females). Their mean age was 46.03 ± 16.2 years. The mean duration between positive real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction test report for COVID-19 and the day of visit to eye clinic was 47.5±24.1 days. At least one ocular sign was present in 54 (63.5%) patients. The most common presenting ocular symptom was irritation (40%) followed by redness (29.4%). Frequently encountered ocular signs were conjunctival hyperaemia (37.6%), follicular conjunctivitis (30.6%), Keratoconjunctivitis (2.4%), central serous chorioretinopathy (3.5%), branch retinal vein occlusion (1.2%) and rhino-orbital mucormycosis (3.5%). Conclusion: Wide variety of ophthalmic manifestations can occur among COVID-19 survivors, some of which can also be sight threatening and hence they should not be ignored.

Keywords

• covid-19 survivors
• covid-recovered patients
• eye clinic
• ocular features
• post-acute covid-19