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Ultraviolet Radiation Effects on the Human Eye

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Photochemical and Photobiological Reviews

Abstract

Many papers and reviews in the past have focused their attention on the question of ultraviolet (UV) radiation damage to ocular tissues. Unfortunately, all of these works have dealt with damage to specific tissues, and to get a comprehensive view of the field, the reader has been required to consult many references. In this chapter, we will comprehensively cover what is known about UV radiation damage to all ocular tissues. For clarity and for completeness, some repetition of older work is necessary, but the study of UV radiation effects on the eye has only begun to unfold in recent years, and therefore the emphasis here is on recent work. While UV radiation effects on the cornea have been established for many years, the question of UV damage to the retina has only recently been seriously entertained and established. The literature on the effects on the retina, therefore, is still scant. The question of UV radiation-induced aging or damage to the lens is a topic of much controversy and speculation. As the latest example of possible solar radiation-induced aging of a human tissue, this is perhaps one of the most exciting new directions in ophthalmology and human biology research. We will therefore study this question in depth.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Harvard University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA

    Richard B. Kurzel, Myron L. Wolbarsht & Bill S. Yamanashi

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  1. Richard B. Kurzel
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  2. Myron L. Wolbarsht
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  3. Bill S. Yamanashi
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  1. Stanford University School of Medicine, USA

    Kendric C. Smith

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© 1977 Plenum Press, New York

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Kurzel, R.B., Wolbarsht, M.L., Yamanashi, B.S. (1977). Ultraviolet Radiation Effects on the Human Eye. In: Smith, K.C. (eds) Photochemical and Photobiological Reviews. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-2577-2_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-2577-2_3

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