Transillumination through everted lid to visualize foreign bodies.

Abstract

In the past year I have seen four patients who have had vegetable spines or bracts lodged in the conjunctival sac, with marked symptoms of scratching, lacrimation, etc., which characterize a sharp foreign body rubbing on the cornea. 1 These tiny bracts have barbs on them and tend to stick firmly in the conjunctival aspect of the eyelid. Being vegetable matter, they are very hard to see. By accident I found a way to visualize them more easily, and I felt this information worth passing on. The first case of this sort was relieved when I finally, with difficulty, located the foreign body with the use of the slit lamp. I was able to remove it with fine forceps. In the second case I failed to see the foreign body on everting the lid, using a loupe and a good light. Looking again, I everted the upper lid with a