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Review
. 2023 Jan 12;11(1):166.
doi: 10.3390/vaccines11010166.

Corneal Adverse Events Associated with SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 Vaccination: A Systematic Review

Lana Kuziez  1 , Taher K Eleiwa  2 , Muhammad Z Chauhan  3 , Ahmed B Sallam  3 , Abdelrahman M Elhusseiny  3 , Hajirah N Saeed  4   5   6
Affiliations
Review

Corneal Adverse Events Associated with SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 Vaccination: A Systematic Review

Lana Kuziez et al. Vaccines (Basel). .

Abstract

Vaccines against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have played an important global role in reducing morbidity and mortality from COVID-19 infection. While the benefits of vaccination greatly outweigh the risks, adverse events do occur. Non-ocular adverse effects of the vaccines have been well-documented, but descriptions of ophthalmic effects remain limited. This systematic review aims to provide an overview of reported cases of corneal adverse events after receiving vaccination against COVID-19 and to compile existing clinical data to bring attention to these phenomena. Our review discusses corneal graft rejection, including proposed mechanisms, herpetic keratitis, and other reported corneal complications. Ophthalmologists and primary care physicians should be aware of such possible associations.

Keywords: COVID-19 vaccine; corneal complications; corneal graft rejection; coronavirus; herpes simplex; herpes zoster; keratitis; keratoplasty; vaccination; viral keratitis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA flow diagram for this systematic review of the literature.
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