Abstract
Purpose :
Digital eye strain (DES) is a group of vision-related problems that include symptoms of dry eyes and asthenopia. Previous research suggests that a reduced blink rate from screen use may lead to the dry eye symptoms of DES, while improper visual settings, such as a close working distance and poor lighting may lead to the asthenopia symptoms of DES. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of blink rate and visual setting on DES symptoms in young adults aged 21 to 35 years.
Methods :
This study recruited 38 young adults from the Illinois College of Optometry. Participants were asked to watch a 15-minute video in four different conditions in which a high or low blink rate was paired with an optimal or poor visual setting. The optimal visual setting was a working distance of 60cm in a photopic condition (Lux=200). The poor visual setting was a viewing distance of 30cm in a scotopic condition (Lux=0). The high blink rate was defined as 20 blinks per minute and the low blink rate was 10 blinks per minute. A 10-item digital eye strain survey, in which participants rated their symptoms from 0 to 10, was administered at baseline as well as after each test condition. The study required two visits and the four test conditions were randomized. Two-way repeated measures ANOVA was performed to determine whether blink rate and visual setting affected the symptoms of DES.
Results :
The mean age (SD) of participants was 25.9 (2.9) years, range from 22.0 to 34.0 years. Increase of DES score from baseline was significantly higher in the poor visual setting than that in the optimal visual setting (F (1,37) = 7.85, P=.008). Changes in visual setting had a significant effect on 5 survey items: difficulty refocusing from distance (F (1,37) = 5.08, P= .03), dry eyes (F (1,37) = 6.45, P=.02), eye strain (F (1,37) = 6.53, P=.02), sensitivity to light (F (1,37) = 5.66, P=.02), and discomfort in the eyes (F (1,37) =5.85, P=.02). The mean scores for these factors are listed in Table 1. No difference in DES scores was found between high blink rate and low blink rate conditions (F (1,37) = 0.09, P=.77).
Conclusions :
Our findings suggest that both a proper working distance (60cm) and adequate room lighting (Lux=200) could potentially alleviate the symptoms of digital eye strain. Interestingly, a high blink rate (20 blinks/min) did not reduce digital eye strain symptoms compared to a low blink rate (10 blinks/min).
This abstract was presented at the 2023 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in New Orleans, LA, April 23-27, 2023.