Concurrent and Post COVID-19 Ophthalmological Implications

BACKGROUND AND AIM: COVID-19 infection is a respiratory disease but it can have ophthalmological manifestations as well. This study aimed to investigate the ophthalmological implications of COVID-19 either during the course of the disease or after recovery. METHODS: A retrospective study included the records of 425 COVID-19 patients, proved by positive PCR swabs. The records were collected from three isolation hospitals in Gharbeya Governorate, Egypt. RESULTS: The mean age of the studied group was 41.73 ± 13.59, and 216 (50.8%) of them were males. One hundred and thirty one (30.8%) patients had ophthalmological manifestations. Among the entire patients, the most common ophthalmological presentation was conjunctivitis in 111 patients (26.1%), followed by neuro-retinal affection in 9 (2.1%), secondary fungal orbital cellulitis in 6 (1.4%), episcleritis in 3 (0.7%) and keratitis in 2 (0.5%) patients. All of the observed ophthalmological implications occurred either during the course of the disease (concurrent) or after recovery, except for the fungal orbital cellulitis which occurred only after recovery. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 could cause different eye manifestations. Recovery from the main disease does not guarantee eye safety, especially in high-risk patients.