ArticleBMJ open ophthalmology2020
Sore eyes as the most significant ocular symptom experienced by people with COVID-19: a comparison between pre-COVID-19 and during COVID-19 states.
Article in BMJ open ophthalmology, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 27 citations in OpenAlex.
- TFOS lifestyle: Impact of societal challenges on the ocular surface.The ocular surface · 2023Pooled it
- SARS-CoV-2-induced sensory perturbations: A narrative review of clinical phenotypes, molecular pathologies, and possible interventions.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2025Review
- Impact of COVID-19 on Ocular Surface Health: Infection Mechanisms, Immune Modulation, and Inflammatory Responses.Viruses · 2025Review
- Severe Adenovirus Infection with SARS-CoV-2 Co-infection.Internal medicine (Tokyo, Japan) · 2024Article
- Long-COVID autonomic syndrome in working age and work ability impairment.Scientific reports · 2024Observational
- Article
- Ocular symptoms in COVID-19 infection: a survey study.Journal of ophthalmic inflammation and infection · 2022Article
- COVID-19 and the eye: alternative facts The 2022 Bowman Club, David L. Easty lecture.BMJ open ophthalmology · 2022Review
- Detection of SARS-CoV-2-RNA in post-mortem samples of human eyes.Graefe's archive for clinical and experimental ophthalmology = Albrecht von Graefes Archiv fur klinische und experimentelle Ophthalmologie · 2022Article
- Autonomic dysfunction in post-COVID patients with and witfhout neurological symptoms: a prospective multidomain observational study.Journal of neurology · 2022Observational
- Does Covera-19 know 'when to hold 'em or 'when to fold 'em? A translational thought experiment.Translational medicine communications · 2021Review
- Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Refractive Surgery.Current ophthalmology reports · 2021Review
- Neuro-ophthalmic Manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 and Its Vaccination: A Narrative Review.Journal of ophthalmic & vision researchReview
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveConjunctivitis has been reported in people suffering from COVID-19. However, many ocular symptoms are associated with the term 'conjunctivitis' which may be misleading. It is also unknown whether ocular symptoms were different in chronic sufferers of anterior eye diseases, when they were experienced or how long they lasted for compared with other COVID-19 symptoms.
methodsAn online structured questionnaire obtained self-report data from people who had a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19. Data for the type, frequency and duration of different COVID-19 symptoms were ascertained. Anterior eye symptoms experienced by participants in the pre-COVID-19 state were compared with during the COVID-19 state.
resultsData from 83 participants showed that the most reported COVID-19 symptoms were dry cough (66%), fever (76%), fatigue (90%) and loss of smell/taste (70%). The three most common ocular symptoms experienced by participants were photophobia (18%), sore eyes (16%) and itchy eyes (17%). The frequency of sore eyes was significantly higher (p
conclusionThe most significant ocular symptom experienced by people suffering from COVID-19 was sore eyes. Other symptoms associated with other types of conjunctivitis, such as mucous discharge and gritty eyes linked to bacterial infection, did not reach significance. The term 'conjunctivitis' is too broad and should be used with caution.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.