StemCell Therapy

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) After the snowstorm Thursday it was a nice winters day, with the sun shining down on the new white snow, but the reflection of the sunshine off the fresh snow could lead to problems with your vision.

One thing is snow blindness which is ultraviolet damage from reflections off the bright snow. Were relatively closer to sea level so its not as common here as if youre at altitude people who are mountaineering will get this a lot more, said Dr. James Rosenthal an ophthalmologist in Springfield.

Snow blindness occurs as a result of a burn to the clear front surface of the eye known as the cornea. Symptoms can include pain, redness, hazy vision and even a temporary loss of vision.

You can treat it with lubrication and in a mild case you can just go to the drug store get artificial tear preparation in a more severe case a patient may need to be patched with topical ointments.

The term used to describe the amount of sunlight reflected by snow is known as albedo. The albedo will be higher for new fresh white snow and it will be lower for older dirty snow.

The albedo of snow drops quickly after a storm due to sand and salt from the roads and pollutants in the air.

To protect yourself from snow blindness you should wear sunglasses or a hat with a brim.

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This entry was posted on February 12, 2017 at 4:48 am and is filed under Blindness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |