“If you have goggles or an eye shield, you should use it. It’s not universally recommended, but if you really want to be complete, you should probably use it if you can.” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Updated: August 13, 2020 at 4:59 p.m. ET.
Based on what doctors know about how Covid-19 spreads, it’s possible to get infected through your eyes, but not common. However, it makes sense to use eye protection and a mask anywhere you can’t effectively maintain social distance from others for an extended period such as on board a plane or in a classroom.
Wearing eye protection in public to fend off COVID-19, according to Dr. Fauci, “…is not universally recommended, but if you really want to be complete, you should probably use it if you can.” But one reason that this hasn’t been pushed for the general public yet, he suggested, is because, “it’s so easy for people to just make a cloth mask.”
Glasses or sunglasses can provide some protection, but due to the openings on the top, bottom and sides, aerosols could still get in.
Face shields and protective goggles are advised by medical experts. Protective eye goggles should “fit snugly around the corners of the eye and across the brow. Face shields work because they protect the crown and chin from exposure, as well as the eyes. But, you still must wear a mask when wearing a face shield in order to cover your nose and mouth.
“If you have goggles or an eye shield, you should use it.” — Dr. Anthony Fauci
Fauci explained that the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 infects mucosal surfaces — or parts of the body including the eyes, nose and mouth that secrete mucus to stop pathogens and dirt from getting into your body. So “perfect protection” of your mucosal surfaces would include covering every one of them up, he said.
“Theoretically you should protect all of the mucosal surfaces, so if you have goggles or an eye shield, you should use it,” he said.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests protective eyewear for health care professionals, noting that “use of eye protection is recommended in areas with moderate to substantial community transmission.” As a result, doctors and nurses do wear goggles or face shields in areas where they are coming into close contact with COVID-19 patients.