Eyepatch: Difference between revisions
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* [[José Millán Astray]] |
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* [[David Bowie]] (British singer) |
* [[David Bowie]] (British singer) |
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* [[Pete Burns]] (Leader sing of British New Wave band, Dead or Alive) |
* [[Pete Burns]] (Leader sing of British New Wave band, Dead or Alive) |
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Revision as of 02:15, 2 January 2010
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (March 2008) |
An eyepatch is a small patch that is worn in front of one eye. It may be a cloth patch attached around the head by an elastic band or by a string, or an adhesive bandage. It is often worn by people to cover a lost or injured eye, but it also has a therapeutic use in children for the treatment of amblyopia. (See orthoptics and vision therapy.)
History
In the years before advanced medicine and surgery, eyepatches were common. They were particularly prevalent among members of dangerous occupations, such as sailors[citation needed] and blacksmiths[citation needed]. Sailors would also wear them over one eye above deck and then switch it over in order to be able to see in the dark below deck. David Bowie made it a fashion statement in 1972.
Today, with prosthetic eyes increasingly accessible, eyepatches are no longer common[citation needed].
Sailors
Eye patches may have had a more practical purpose for sailors and pilots.
Sailors (stereotyped by the eye-patch-wearing pirate) who often went above and below deck, might have used eye patches to have one eye adjusted for the top deck and the other eye already adjusted for the darkness when suddenly going below deck. The strong sunlight while above deck on an oceangoing vessel could require minutes of adjustment to the dim lighting below deck. With virtually no light sources below deck, sailors would have to rely heavily upon their eyes to adjust. In the critical moments of modifying the rigging, navigating, and especially during battle, those minutes were too precious. A simple switch of the patch from one eye to the other might have saved time when going between decks. [1]
Pilots
Similarly, pilots at one time would also do the same, when flying at night over brightly lit cities, so that one eye could look out, and the other would be adjusted for the dim lighting of the cockpit to read unlit instruments and maps.
Once flashlights with red bulbs, backlit instruments, and other modern instruments were introduced, this no longer was necessary, just as boats and ships evolving into being well lit made eye patches a thing of the past.
Some military pilots have worn a lead-lined or gold-lined eyepatch, to protect against blindness in both eyes, in the event of a nuclear blast or laser weapon attack.[2][3][4]
Eyecare Treatment
Amblyopia
Eye patching is used in the orthoptic management[5] of children at risk of amblyopia (lazy eye), especially strabismic or anisometropic[6] amblyopia.
These conditions can cause visual suppression of the dissimilar images by the brain, resulting in blindness in an otherwise functional eye.
By patching the good eye, the amblyopic eye is forced to function, causing vision to be retained.
Extraocular muscle palsy
To initially relieve double vision (diplopia) caused by an extra-ocular muscle palsy, an eye care professional may recommend using an eyepatch. This can help to relieve the dizziness, vertigo and nausea that are associated with this form of double vision.
Notable eyepatch-wearers
- Rahmah ibn Jabir al-Jalahimah (Arab pirate)
- José Millán Astray
- Big Boss
- David Bowie (British singer)
- Pete Burns (Leader sing of British New Wave band, Dead or Alive)
- Bushwick Bill (Rap singer with the Geto Boys)
- Dale Chihuly
- Marie Colvin (War journalist)
- Xiahou Dun
- Dick Curless
- Sammy Davis Jr.
- Moshe Dayan (Israeli military leader and politician)
- André De Toth
- Amadeus Hellequin (Shaman, healer and writer)
- John Ford
- Gabrielle
- Ron Hamilton
- Bobby Helms
- James Joyce (he was known to wear one even though he never lost an eye)
- Yagyu Jubei
- Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov (Russian Field Marshal)
- George Maciunas
- Jean-Marie Le Pen (French far-right politician, lost his left eye in a brawl)
- Date Masamune
- Momus
- Mother Angelica
- Nivek Ogre, singer of Skinny Puppy
- Victor Page
- Wiley Post
- Tegan Quin (of Tegan and Sara)
- Nicholas Ray
- Ray Sawyer, lead vocalist for Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show
- Barbara Boggs Sigmund
- Slick Rick
- Claus von Stauffenberg
- Jan Syrový (Czechoslovak general and polictian)
- Andrew Vachss
- Sonia Velasquez
- Raoul Walsh
- Rich Williams, Kansas guitarist
- Jan Zizka (Czech general and Hussite leader)
- Luís de Camões (Portuguese writer)
- Tuomas Pietiäinen (Finnish columnist)
- Rebecca Eads
See also
External links
References
- ^ http://mythbustersresults.com/epsode71
- ^ Nuclear flash eye protection, Steen Hartov
- ^ Les Frazier
- ^ Laser Weapons
- ^ Georgievski Z, Koklanis K, Leone J. Orthoptists' management of amblyopia - a case based survey. Strabismus, 2007, 15(3): 197-203. [Pubmed Link]
- ^ Georgievski Z, Koklanis K, Leone J. Fixation behaviour in the treatment of amblyopia using atropine. Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology 2008; 36 (Suppl 2): A764–A765. [Link]