14 hours Ago By Samantha Masters
An optometrist says Elton John 's eye condition could worsen if poorly managed or left untreated. Back in September, the singer, who turns 78 today, told fans he had been left with "limited vision" due to a severe eye infection. In a statement, he added: “I am healing, but it’s an extremely slow process and it will take some time before sight returns to the impacted eye.
” Two months later, he said during an appearance on Good Morning America: “I unfortunately lost eyesight in my right eye in July. It’s been four months now since I’ve been able to see." The following month, Elton said he was unable to watch the stage show The Devil Wears Prada: The Musical, which he wrote the music for, due to his deteriorating vision.
“I haven’t been able to come to many of the previews because, as you know, I have lost my eyesight," he added. "So it’s hard for me to see it. But I love to hear it and, boy, it sounded good tonight.
" Elton went on to thank his long-term husband David Furnish for being his "rock" throughout his health woes. More recently, The Sun reported that he had to "simplify" his usual signature for the special edition of his new album Who Believes In Angels?. While the cause or diagnosis of the singer's eye infection has not been publicly disclosed, Dr.
Meenal Agarwal shared her expertise on what she believes it could be. She said: "Eye infections can range from mild cases like conjunctivitis (pink eye) to more severe conditions, such as orbital cellulitis (an infection of the tissues around the eye that can spread to the brain if untreated), infectious keratitis (a corneal infection that can cause scarring if not treated), or endophthalmitis (a severe infection inside the eye). All three can lead to blindness if not promptly treated.
" The doctor suspects Elton is suffering from one of these infection, due to his experience with vision loss. On how the condition could worsen, she warned: "In severe cases, untreated or poorly managed eye infections can lead to permanent vision loss or blindness. "If not promptly and effectively treated, the infection may spread beyond the eye to other organs, causing serious complications.
In extreme cases, this can result in the need for eye removal (enucleation)." Furthermore, eye surgeon Dr. Jovi Boparai stresses the importance of seeing an eye doctor should you be concerned about any eye symptoms such as; redness, irritation, dryness, blurry vision, vision loss, light sensitivity, double vision, watery eyes, changes in color vision, discharge and more.
"Your eye doctor can help determine the diagnosis and come up with a management plan," he shares. He adds of the singer's condition: " Elton John mentions that he’s recuperating at home, and hopefully this means that his condition is stable. But depending on the type of eye infection, he may still be at risk for more vision loss.
"I’m confident he and his eye doctor will monitor very closely." Express.co.
uk has contacted a representative for Elton for comment..
