Dropping urine in eye infection can lead to blindness, says expert

Dr Mohammed Abullahi of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH) has warned that treating eye infection with human urine can lead to blindness.

Abdullahi, a public health physician, made this known in an interview in Ilorin on Thursday.

According to him, people who engage in such practices are prone to losing their eyes completely.

He said that treatment for conjunctivitis, ‘Apollo’ and other eye diseases, were available at clinics and hospitals and people did not need to resort to home remedies.

Abdullahi said that some people go to the length of using battery acid and other dangerous substances to treat eye infections.

The others, he said, use sugar or lemon juice which is unlikely to treat any ailment of the eye, but it might also cause some serious eye irritation.

“The traditional eye remedy of instilling urine into the eye can have devastating consequences when used by patients with gonorrhoea,” he warned.

He explained that gonococcal conjunctivitis cases had various degrees of corneal melt.

According to him, this range from peripheral guttering with or without iris prolapse to total corneal melt.

Abdullahi disclosed that people whose condition deteriorated to this state would have to go through surgery.