[pct-l] Eye problems

[Eric Lee]

Warpzilla wrote:
>
I was just wondering of anyone on the trail knows anything about any  
eye problems that could arise on the trail.
>

I wear gas-permeable contacts that I have to remove every night and
certainly cleanliness and dust are both a problem while backpacking.  I just
do the best I can and carry a backup set of glasses.

A couple of years ago on a trip to Yellowstone National Park I got a sliver
of silica dust actually embedded in my cornea.  I didn't even really notice
it at first but a couple of days after I returned home I was in agony.  My
eye hurt like crazy and both eyes were extremely sensitive to light.  My eye
doctor fixed me up pretty fast - he found the sliver with his microscope and
scraped it out.  A day later I was much better.

Any problem with your eyes should be taken seriously.  If you've been having
trouble for more than a day and it doesn't seem to be getting better, you
should definitely get yourself out to an eye doctor to take a look.  It
could be an infection, or a scratch, or something actually embedded in your
cornea like I experienced.

Eric