Newswise — Media Advisory: Upcoming Solar Eclipse—Mount Sinai Ophthalmologists Warn About Dangers of Looking Directly at the Sun
Warning follows Mount Sinai’s landmark eye damage case linked to the 2017 eclipse
(New York, NY – March 13, 2024) – Do not look directly at the sun during the upcoming solar eclipse without taking essential precautions. That’s the message from ophthalmologists at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai (NYEE) as we approach the event on Monday, April 8.
Their warning comes after a unique case during the 2017 eclipse, when a Mount Sinai patient watched the eclipse for 20 seconds without proper eye protection. That patient ended up with permanent eye damage and was diagnosed with solar retinopathy—a rare condition with no known treatment.
Our doctors are available for interviews to talk about how to prevent eye damage and share important safety tips during the solar eclipse.
AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEWS: Avnish Deobhakta, MD, vitreoretinal surgeon at NYEE
IMPORTANT SAFETY TIPS:
- Do not look directly at the sun or the sun’s rays during the eclipse without proper eye protection
- Only special-purpose solar filter sunglasses will protect your eyes
- Glasses filters must be up to international safety standards and labeled as “ISO 12312-2” compliant
- Be careful of counterfeits often sold online and seek out approved vendors listed by the American Astronomical Society
- Do not use binoculars or special lenses that magnify the eclipse—these can focus the sun’s rays into the retina and cause damage
- It is safe to properly use a pinhole camera to view the eclipse
- If you record the eclipse on your phone, do not look at the screen while it’s recording and watch the video later
SOLAR ECLIPSE AND RISKS TO VISION: Doctors and patients should be prepared for this upcoming eclipse and become more informed of the risks of permanent eye damage linked to this event.
A study in JAMA led by Dr. Deobhakta detailed a patient’s eye damage after she looked directly at the sun during the 2017 solar eclipse without proper sunglasses. Within four hours, the patient developed blurry distortion in both eyes and could only see the color black. When specialists at NYEE examined her three days later, they found she had crescent-shaped retinal damage—the shape of the visible portion of the sun during the partial solar eclipse in New York City. They diagnosed her solar retinopathy and photochemical burns. She has permanent eye damage with no known treatment or cure.
Researchers used breakthrough technology to examine the damage on a cellular level and got an instant, and detailed look at the damaged photoreceptors though this high-resolution imaging modality. This work will help scientists gain a better understanding of this rare condition and may help develop future treatments.
IMAGES: We have images showing the cellular damage in the patient’s retinas from the 2017 solar eclipse case upon request.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with more than 43,000 employees working across eight hospitals, more than 400 outpatient practices, more than 300 labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time—discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it. Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 7,400 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 joint-venture outpatient surgery centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. Hospitals within the System are consistently ranked by Newsweek’s® “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals, Best in State Hospitals, World Best Hospitals and Best Specialty Hospitals” and by U.S. News & World Report's® “Best Hospitals” and “Best Children’s Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is on the U.S. News & World Report® “Best Hospitals” Honor Roll for 2023-2024.
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