May 2006
Volume 47, Issue 13
Free
ARVO Annual Meeting Abstract  |   May 2006
Central Tear Film Thickness Before and After Blinks
Author Affiliations & Notes
  • S. Jalal
    University of Rochester, Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY University of Rochester, Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY
  • J. Wang
    University of Rochester, Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY University of Rochester, Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY
    Ophthalmology,
  • S. Ching
    University of Rochester, Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY University of Rochester, Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY
    Ophthalmology,
  • S. Chung
    University of Rochester, Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY University of Rochester, Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY
  • Footnotes
    Commercial Relationships  S. Jalal, None; J. Wang, None; S. Ching, None; S. Chung, None.
  • Footnotes
    Support  Rochester / Finger Lakes Eye & Tissue Bank and Research to Prevent Blindness
Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science May 2006, Vol.47, 265. doi:
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      S. Jalal, J. Wang, S. Ching, S. Chung; Central Tear Film Thickness Before and After Blinks . Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2006;47(13):265.

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      © ARVO (1962-2015); The Authors (2016-present)

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Abstract

Purpose: : The tear film is renewed with each blink. The impact on the tear film thickness by blinking remains unknown. The aim was to determine central tear film thickness before and after blinks using real time corneal optical coherence tomography (OCT).

Methods: : Custom built corneal OCT was developed to obtain rapid repeated cross–sections of the tear film over the cornea. Eight healthy subjects with no history of dry eye were recruited into this study. Both eyes were imaged with a vertical 12.5mm OCT scan at 8 images per second. Eight images were obtained immediately before and after five consecutive blinks. A total of 5 blinks and 4 blink intervals were analyzed for each subject using custom software.

Results: : After each blink, tear film thickness increased an average of 3.2 microns (SD= 2.63) compared to the thickness immediately before the blink (paired t–test, p=0.002). After eye opening, tear film thickness decreased an average of 2.9 microns (SD=3) compared to the thickness immediately after eye opening (paired t–test, p=0.004). Eyes with higher increases of the tear film after blinks showed higher decreases between blinks.

Conclusions: : This is the first study examining the effect of blinking on tear film thickness. The data showed that blinking thickens the tear film and that eye opening thins it. The method developed in this study appears to be a promising method to study the tear film system.

Keywords: cornea: tears/tear film/dry eye • detection 
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