What is a corneal ulcer?
A corneal ulcer is any breakdown of the surface upper layer of the cornea. It maybe superficial or penetrate the deeper layers, eventually also involving the internal part of the eye.
Corneal ulcers can be caused due to infections like bacteria/fungus/virus, or sometimes due to inflammation- meaning some reactions of the eyes like allergy or severe dryness.
Infective corneal ulcers usually present with redness, pain and watering or discharge from the eye. A yellowish or whitish spot may appear on the cornea- which is the site of the corneal infection, and there maybe accumulation of pus inside the chamber of the eye associated with it.
Usually a corneal scraping must be done. This means a small amount of the infected part is carefully removed under anaesthesia and sent for lab testing. Based on the reports, specific treatment can be started. It may take a few days or even weeks to recover based on the depth of involvement and may heal with a scar(permanent mark on the cornea).
Since Cornea contributes significantly to vision, any scar may also produce blurring of vision. This will depend on individual healing and is unpredictable.
