[A strategy for preventing health injuries due to observing the solar eclipse in Mexico]

A total solar eclipse was watched by almost [corrected] 50 million people in the Mexican Republic on July 11, 1991. Cases of solar retinitis, which can even lead to permanent loss of visual function, have been reported in the international literature. The institutions of the National Health System employed a strategy for the prevention of risks and health damages caused by direct observation of the phenomenon, which implied the elaboration of a technical norm concerning the manufacturing of sun filters, the diffusion of preventive actions through the use of mass media, the detection and prompt care of cases and the establishment of an ophthalmologic care system and epidemiological surveillance system. The result was the detection of 21 moderate cases of solar retinitis, all of which recovered their full visual function after four months. The present article reports the implemented actions and the details of the cases.