# Fried retinas from eclipse - any repair possible? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 21, 2017, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fried-retinas-from-eclipse-any-repair-possible/794275 "2017-08-21T13:01:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2017, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fried-retinas-from-eclipse-any-repair-possible/794275/1 "2017-08-21T13:01:36Z")
I have a weird question (well, it is weird to me). I **know** staring at the sun can cause irreparable damage to your eyes. However, I am curious - is there anything an ophthalmologist can do after the fact to **reduce** (note I said reduce, not completely repair) the damage, or are all the ophthalmologists out there going to be telling a bunch of people on Tuesday “sorry - I can’t do anything for you; go away”. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2017, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fried-retinas-from-eclipse-any-repair-possible/794275/2 "2017-08-21T13:11:20Z")
> [@Canadjun](#): > > I have a weird question (well, it is weird to me). I **know** staring at the sun can cause irreparable damage to your eyes… Maybe you don’t understand what irreparable damage means? It means it can’t be repaired. Your eyes may heal themselves and it may take up to 3 months (or not at all), but there is no medical procedure to repair the damage to the retina. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2017, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fried-retinas-from-eclipse-any-repair-possible/794275/3 "2017-08-21T13:21:22Z")
The damage is a burn on the inside of your retina, which is the inside of your eyeball. Think about a severe sunburn on your back. What can a doctor do about _that_? Nothing. They can dress it to prevent infection if it blisters, recommend cold compresses, but there is nothing they can do to repair the burn itself, and you can’t do those things to the retina. I do not know what an ophthalmologist would tell you but they can’t fix it. IANAD ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2017, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fried-retinas-from-eclipse-any-repair-possible/794275/4 "2017-08-21T13:26:37Z")
Your body can heal some of the damage naturally. Other than that, there’s no effective treatment. > [@](#): > > Statistically, about half of those who are diagnosed with eclipse blindness will recover full vision in six months, he said. The other half either partially recover or are stuck with the problem for the rest of their lives. > > And when it comes to treatment, there really aren’t any options. “Over the years, certainly ophthalmologists have tried various ways, pharmacological and otherwise, to try and reduce the amount of damage and swelling that is thought to be the main cause for the loss of vision,” Chou said. “For the most part, those types of treatments don’t seem to be effective.” > > The only thing doctors can do to help these patients is to treat the case as any other case of visual impairment, Chou said, by teaching the individuals how to get around in the world and function without central vision. From here: > **[A Solar Eclipse Can Blind You (Read This Before Looking at the Sun!)](https://www.space.com/37199-solar-eclipse-blindness.html)** > > Here's why you should never stare at the sun — and what can happen if you do. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2017, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fried-retinas-from-eclipse-any-repair-possible/794275/5 "2017-08-21T13:29:31Z")
Just so I am not misunderstood - I had **absolutely** no intention of doing anything stupid; I was just truly curious if there is anything opthalmologists might try on idiots that did manage to fry their retinas? I see from **ECG** that the answer is no. ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2017, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fried-retinas-from-eclipse-any-repair-possible/794275/6 "2017-08-22T17:51:26Z")
That sort of injury might lend itself to stem cell therapy. I think it is being considered for macular degeneration too.