(HealthDayNews) -- Remember those old pictures of pirates wearing eye patches?
Chances are they may not have needed the patches after all -- not if they were wearing the patches to treat corneal abrasions.
Physicians at the State University of New York reviewed the results of studies of treating corneal abrasions, and concluded that the practice of using eye patches not only doesn't help, it may make things worse.
As reported in the Journal of Family Practice, eye patches don't improve the rate of healing or relieve pain. Instead, patches may increase pain, and by removing binocular vision, they take away depth perception.
