Bee Stinger Lodges in Man's Eye After Attack

A man was found to have a bee stinger lodged in his eye after being stung by an insect.

The horrifying discovery was made after the 55-year-old, from Philadelphia, went to the Wills Eye Hospital complaining of "worsening vision and pain in his right eye," according to a new paper in The New England Journal of Medicine.

The man had been stung in his eye by the bee two days prior, and had gone to the local emergency department to get the stinger removed—however, some of the barb was left lodged in his cornea.

"A man suffered a bee sting directly to his eye, resulting in an intense ocular inflammatory response which affected his vision," Wills Eye Hospital ophthalmologist Talia Shoshany told Newsweek. "The patient reports walking by a bee hive at work and being stung. He was not otherwise tending to the bees."

The barb was found to be stabbing into his cornea, which is the transparent, dome-shaped surface that covers the front of the eye, helping to focus incoming light onto the retina.

"On physical examination at the current presentation, vision in the right eye was limited to counting fingers," the doctors wrote in the paper.

The doctors at the Wills Eye Hospital examined the man's eye, which "showed conjunctival injection, inferior corneal edema [swelling of the cornea], and an infiltrate [collection of inflammatory cells] at the nasal limbus [region of the cornea] with a piece of retained stinger. A hyphema [blood collecting within the eye] which was attributed to iris trauma from the buried stinger and bleeding iris vessels, was also observed."

The iris is the colored part of the eye surrounding the pupil, which contains muscles that adjust the size of the pupil to control the amount of light entering the eye, while the conjunctiva is a thin, transparent membrane that covers the white part of the eye (sclera) and the inner surfaces of the eyelids, helping to keep the eye moist and protects it from dust and microorganisms.

Using a pair of hyper-precise tweezers, the doctors removed the stinger fragment from the man's eye.

"Ocular bee stings warrant referral to an ophthalmologist owing to the severe inflammation that may result from the injury, as well as the possibility of a retained stinger in the eye," the researchers said.

When a bee stings, it injects venom through its stinger into the skin. The venom contains proteins that affect skin cells and the immune system, leading to pain and swelling around the sting site. A bee sting in the eye is a medical issue due to the sensitivity and critical function of the eye, as significant swelling can occur quickly, potentially impairing vision. The cornea can be scratched by the sting or by any attempts to rub the eye, and there is a risk of infection if the eye or surrounding tissues are damaged. This kind of incident can be "devastating to ocular health and visual function," according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

"He improved with steroid and antibiotic drops, although eventually required both cataract surgery and a corneal transplant from the sequelae of the topical steroids and the toxic effect of the venom on the cornea," Shoshany said. "The patient fully recovered his vision after several months of treatment."

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