This article is only available in the PDF format. Download the PDF to view the article, as well as its associated figures and tables.
To the Editor.
—In the past six months in my office, I have seen five cases of UV corneal pathology (carbon-arc light) from a welder's torch. In each instance the patient was wearing contact lenses but did not have protective goggles or the usual welder's shield over his head. The average distance from the patient's eyes to the source of the arc was 25 cm. In each patient the reaction was delayed; symptoms of pain, burning, blurred vision, and foreign-body sensation occurred—typical of UV short-wave irradiation.Slit-lamp examination disclosed notable edema of the corneal epithelium. Removal of the contact lenses was difficult in every case. They were adherent primarily in the pupillary zone. In two cases the patient had tried to remove the contact lenses without success and came to my office. In every case there was punctate stippling of the cornea that stained with fluorescein.Has anyone had