Impact of online classes on eye health of children and young adults in the setting of COVID-19 pandemic: A hospital-based survey
BACKGROUND: To analyze the impact of online classes on eye health of children and young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An observational study with a written questionnaire and comprehensive ophthalmic evaluation at a tertiary eye care center in South India, during the COV...
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Published in | Oman journal of ophthalmology Vol. 16; no. 1; pp. 45 - 50 |
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Main Authors | , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
India
Wolters Kluwer India Pvt. Ltd
01.01.2023
Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd Medknow Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd Wolters Kluwer - Medknow Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | BACKGROUND: To analyze the impact of online classes on eye health of children and young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: An observational study with a written questionnaire and comprehensive ophthalmic evaluation at a tertiary eye care center in South India, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
RESULTS: Of the 496 patients, most were 5-10 years old, attending online classes 1-2 h/day with majority (84.7%) having <4 h of classes. Electronic gadget use after classes was seen in 95.6% participants and 28.6% admitted to using it for more than 2 h/day. Digital eye strain (DES) was seen in 50.8% of patients of which headache or eye ache were the most common symptom (30.8%). Duration of online class was found to be the single most independent factor associated with the development of eye complaints (P = 0.001). Duration of class hours (P = 0.007) and light setting (P = 0.008) was found to be independent determinants of developing DES.
CONCLUSIONS: Increased screen time, inadequate light setting, and excessive application of near vision can produce undesirable effects including the development of DES, worsening or development of new refractive errors and squint. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 0974-620X 0974-7842 |
DOI: | 10.4103/ojo.ojo_57_22 |