Patient: Hi, I was diagnosed with think 2 diabetes about a month ago. One of them started to see heavy shadows in his eyes and could not open his left eye. Finally, after many tests, I was diagnosed with diabetes. After an ophthalmology consultation, I had a dilated pupil and there was no diabetic lesion, but after the dilated pupil, I felt blurred vision and fear of light. What is the reason for this? How long does it take to recover? Sun Kang, Ophthalmology Department, Foshan Chancheng District Central Hospital
Sun Kang, Ophthalmology Department, Foshan Second People’s Hospital: The purpose of dilated pupils is 1) to check for diagnosis and 2) to treat. There are two main methods of pupil dilatation for examination purposes: 1. Fast pupil dilators such as tropicamide, which generally dilates the pupil in 20 minutes, and no more medication is used after the examination is completed, and the dilated pupil returns to its pre-dilated state after about 6 hours; 2. Pupil dilators such as atropine eye ointment, which generally takes about 3 days to fully dilate the pupil, and no more medication is used after the examination is completed, and the dilated pupil returns to its pre-dilated state after about 2 to 3 weeks. During dilated pupils, the pupil is unable to regulate the amount of light entering the eye normally, so it feels “photophobic” to the amount of light that can be tolerated under normal pupils, and it feels “blinding” and even tearful under bright light. Pupillary dilatation is achieved mainly by paralyzing the pupillary dilator muscle in the eye with medication, and also by temporarily paralyzing the ciliary muscle, which manages the adjustment of the lens, weakening the “focal adjustment” of the lens and resulting in blurred vision, usually when looking close. If you still feel blurred vision and photophobia after the dilated pupil has worn off, it is important to see an ophthalmologist to find out if there is another cause.