French scientists have discovered, with the help of magnetic resonance imaging, major changes in the eyes of some people with severe form of “Covid-19” disease.
The journal Radiology, published by the Radiology Society of North America (RSNA), indicates that although the emerging coronavirus mainly affects the lungs, it affects the eyes as well, causing conjunctivitis, retinopathy and other problems, which can lead to vision loss.
In order to learn more about the effect of the virus in the eyes, experts of the French Society of Neuroradiology (SFNR) decided to study the case of 129 patients suffering from the severe form of “Covid-19” disease, who all underwent magnetic resonance imaging of the brain.
And as a result of this operation, nine of them showed deformities in the eyeball, in the form of one or several knots in the back of the eye responsible for central vision. And I have eight of them, and I found these knots in both eyes.
“This is the first time that we have obtained such results using magnetic resonance imaging,” says Dr. Augustin Leclair, a senior researcher from the University of Paris and a neuroradiologist at the Adolphe de Rothschild Foundation Hospital in Paris.
And Dr. Leclair notes that serious eye problems can go unnoticed in the hospital because the intensive care units take care of the most serious and life-threatening cases.
According to the researchers, all patients with severe form of “Covid-19” disease must be scanned by eyes, using high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging devices, in order to discover the nodes. The fundoscopy method can also be used to detect changes in the retina, fundus, and optic nerve.
“We call for all patients with severe case of” Covid-19 “who are in the intensive care department to be subjected to the necessary tests. They should receive special treatment and means to protect their eyes,” Dr. Leclair says.
The researchers indicate that the mechanism of formation of these nodes has not been studied in detail, although it is likely related to the inflammation caused by the emerging coronavirus. Or it may be the result of insufficient drainage of the eye veins in intubated patients or patients in intensive care units who spend long periods of time lying on their stomachs.
The researchers add, and there are other factors that can cause these complications, which are chronic diseases. It has been shown that among the nine patients whose eye nodes are discovered: two suffer from diabetes, six from obesity and two from high blood pressure.
Source: Novosti