An eye surgeon has noted that fewer people have sought medical help for potential eye damage following the UK’s recent solar eclipse than after the country’s last total eclipse in 1999. Millions across Britain looked skyward on Wednesday as the Moon covered more than 90% of the Sun, marking the most significant eclipse in 27 years. Speaking to the BBC, Alexander Ionides of Moorfield Eye Hospital said that while hospitals were “inundated” with worried patients in 1999, it now appears that repeated warnings about the dangers of looking directly at the Sun without proper eye protection have been “getting through.”
Ionides explained that symptoms of eclipse-related eye damage may include a grey or yellow spot in the center of one’s vision. These symptoms can appear within hours of exposure, but in some cases they may take several days to develop. He urged anyone experiencing such symptoms to seek medical advice. The apparent drop in reported cases suggests that public awareness campaigns about safe viewing practices are having a positive effect, according to the surgeon.