COVID-19: Ocular Manifestations and the APAO Prevention Guidelines for Ophthalmic Practices
Raymond Wong, Daniel Shu Wei Ting, Kelvin H. Wan, Kenny H.W. Lai, Chung‐Nga Ko, Paisan Ruamviboonsuk, Suber S. Huang, Dennis S.C. Lam, Clement C. Tham
Abstract
The World Health Organization declared the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 a "Pandemic" on March 11, 2020. As of June 1, 2020, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 has infected >6.2 million people and caused >372,000 deaths, including many health care personnel. It is highly infectious and ophthalmologists are at a higher risk of the infection due to a number of reasons including the proximity between doctors and patients during ocular examinations, microaerosols generated by the noncontact tonometer, tears as a potential source of infection, and some COVID-19 cases present with conjunctivitis. This article describes the ocular manifestations of COVID-19 and the APAO guidelines in mitigating the risks of contracting and/or spreading COVID-19 in ophthalmic practices.