Some eclipse watchers had to be treated after trying to protect their eyes — with sunscreen

A Redding, California, nurse practitioner said that in the days since Monday’s solar eclipse, some patients have been treated for putting sunscreen in their eyes instead of wearing protective glasses.

Trish Patterson, a nurse practitioner at Prestige Urgent Care, told KRCR TV that while she hasn’t seen many patients with eye damage after the eclipse, some of her colleagues have treated patients with eye pain after putting sunscreen in their eyes.

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“One of my colleagues at moonlight here stated [on Tuesday] that they had patients presenting at their clinic that put sunscreen on their eyeball and presented that they were having pain, and they were referred to an ophthalmologist,” she said.

People who experience dark spots in the center of vision or vision cloudiness since the eclipse should seek medical attention with an ophthalmologist right away.