Summer heat fans eye infections in Odisha

With summer peaking, eye infections like dry eye and catarrhal conjunctivitis are spreading fast, mostly in urban areas of Odisha's Ganjam district, doctors said.
Around 40 to 50 persons with eye ailments are coming to the MKCG Medical College and Hospital here, said B Nageswar Rao Subudhi, head of the eye department at the hospital.
Dust pollution is the cause of dry eye while catarrhal conjunctivitis is caused due to polymer of flowers during spring and summer, he said.
Since dust pollution is high in urban areas, most of the patients are from the towns. While dry eye can affect all age groups, mostly children in the age group of 10 to 15 are prone to catarrhal conjunctivitis, Subudhi said.

Though there is no instance of loss of eyesight due to these diseases, but the patients can't study for some days due to the diseases. Timely treatment is necessary for summer-related eye diseases, he said.
Maintaining proper hygiene and protecting the eyes from dust pollution are some of the preventive measures, Subudhi said.
The doctor also advised people to wash hands properly before touching eyes.
Similarly, he said eye cornea might be affected due to ultra-violate (UV) rays of the sun. When the temperature touches 35 to 40 degree Celsius, UV rays are more threatening to the eyes, he said.