Eye make-up and discomfort

Eye make-up is very popular and millions of women around the world use it.  Some eye cosmetics, like eyeliner, is applied very close to the surface of the eye where it can cause eye disease and ocular discomfort.  What impact does eye make-up on ocular discomfort?  That is the question investigated in a study published in the November 2012 issue of the journal Ophthalmic & Physiological Optics.  

The authors of the study took surveyed 1360 women aged 20-34 and found that over 80% of them used eye cosmetics regularly and over half used at least three different eye cosmetics regularly.  Mascara was the most common type used.

The survey results lead the authors to conclude that the use of multiple eye cosmetics is extensive and
associated with the perception of ocular discomfort. The results suggest that taking a break from eye make-up might make your eyes feel better.  However, the use of makeup could be the cause of diseases such as dry eye, tear gland dysfunction or blepharitis (inflammation of the eyelid where the eyelashes grow).

However, if you love your make-up and can't do without it, see your optometrist to determine if any of those other eye issues are the cause of your discomfort.  It may be possible to treat the other conditions while keeping you in your make-up.

Source:

Eye cosmetic usage and associated ocular comfort
Alison Ng, Katharine Evans, Rachel North and Christine Purslow
School of Optometry and Vision Sciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
Citation information: Ng A, Evans K, North R & Purslow C. Eye cosmetic usage and associated ocular comfort. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt 2012, 32,
501–507. doi: 10.1111/j.1475-1313.2012.00944.x

When changing or replacing contact lenses part way through the day does not improve discomfort - a new study explains why

An interesting study was published in the October 2013 issue of Optometry & Vision Science.  It addresses a situation well known to many contact lens-wearers. Over the course of a day of contact lens wear, discomfort increases for some people.  And for some of these people, changing or replacing the lens to a fresh lens part way through the day does not help. Why is that?  This study may have an answer and suggests that it is not the lens, it's physical changes happening on the surface of your eyes.

The study examined the comfort reported by patients throughout and at the end of a 10-hour day of wear. Subjects were surveyed on a 0–100 scale for comfort on two separate days.

On the first day, nothing was done to the lenses they wore throughout the day, and study participants reported decreasing comfort during the day. This result was expected, as many optometrists observe this in the clinic. Doctors have long argued about the cause of this discomfort. Was it due to ill-fitting lenses?  Or was it due to changes in the surface of the eye caused by contact lens wear?

To answer that question, on the second day the lenses were removed after 5 hours of wear. After removal, either the same lens was reinserted, or it was replaced and a new lens. The assumption was that if lens comfort improved by removing and replacing the same lens, then the surface of the eye was to blame.  On the other hand, if comfort improved after switching to a new lens, then the fit of the lens may be at fault.  The control group wore lenses continuously for 10 ours with no reinsertion or switching to a new lens.

The results showed that there was no difference between the control group (that wore the lenses continuously for 10 hours) and either the group that removed and reinserted the same lens or the group that switched to a new lens.  This lead the researchers to conclude that the increasing discomfort throughout the day was not related to the lenss. They suggested that the likely cause of increasing discomfort was a "fatigue-like response in one or more ocular tissues or stimulation of ocular surface nociceptors induced by the presence of the contact lens."

Source

Consequence of Wear Interruption for Discomfort With Contact Lenses
Optom Vis Sci 2013 Oct 17;[EPub Ahead of Print], EB Papas, D Tilia, D Tomlinson, J Williams, E Chan, J Chan, B Golebiowski



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Yoga fights computer vision syndrome and keeps your eyes healthy

It turns out that that the ancient Indian practice of yoga can help fight a 21st century health issue: computer vision syndrome. Yoga is an ancient Indian science which includes the practice of specific postures, cleansing practices, regulated breathing and meditation. Readers of this blog know that dry eyes are one of the symptoms of computer vision syndrome and arise, in part, because we blink less when using the computer. Other symptoms include eyestrain, irritation, tired eyes, a burning sensation, redness, blurred vision, headaches, neck pain and double vision 

Common ways to fight computer vision syndrome include the use of specially prescribed and designed computer eye wear that reduces eye strain and also keeps the eyes hydrated by increasing the humidity between your eyes and the lens of the eye wear.

In addition to computer eye wear, a study published in the journal Head and Face that examined visual discomfort in professional computer users in Bangalore shows that a combination of yoga practices  may help alleviate the symptoms of computer vision syndrome.

The study researchers, some of whom are affiliated with the Swami Vivekananda Yoga Research Foundation in Bangalore, India, took two hundred and ninety one professional computer users and divided them into two groups.  One group practiced yoga for one hour a day, five days a week for sixty days while the other group did no yoga but did their regular recreational activities for the hour.  Both groups were assessed at baseline and after sixty days for self-rated visual discomfort using a standard questionnaire. 

The researchers employed general whole body yoga postures as well as a subset eye-specific yoga movements, called Trataka.  Interestingly, trataka resembles some exercises employed during optometric vision therapy to treat eye movement disorders.  Here is how the authors of the study described the yoga that they prescribed: 

The 60 minute yoga program included yoga postures (asanas, 15 minutes), regulated breathing (pranayamas, 10 minutes), exercises for the joints (sithilikarana vyayama, 10 minutes), visual cleansing exercises (trataka, 10 minutes), and guided relaxation (15 minutes).

The practice of trataka involves two sets of eye exercises. (i) Shifting the gaze (by moving the eyes alone) in eight directions. During this exercise, practitioners are asked to use their right thumb (and when gazing to the left, their left thumb) as a cue to direct their gaze. The directions are up, down, up to the left, down to the left, up to the right, down to the right and rotation of the eyes clock-wise and anti clock-wise. (ii) During the second exercise, practitioners gaze at a flame placed at eye level without blinking. While gazing at the flame, practitioners are instructed to focus their gaze on the flame and subsequently defocus while keeping their gaze on the flame.

Throughout the practice practitioners should sit upright and should avoid moving their head to shift their gaze.

These techniques were selected either because previous research showed that they reduced physiological arousal  or based on our unpublished clinical observations

While the scores for visual discomfort of both groups were comparable at baseline, after 60 days there was a significantly decreased score in the yoga group, whereas the no-yoga group showed significantly increased scores.  This means that the yoga group had less discomfort whereas the no-yoga group had more discomfort after 60 days.

The study's results suggest that yoga can alleviate the self-reported symptoms of visual discomfort associated with computer vision syndrome.