Cross sectional study on digital eye strain among undergraduate medical students in a medical college in South India

Abstract

Background: Digital eye strain has been a matter of serious concern since the usage of digital devices has increased exponentially in the last few years. Several individuals suffer from physical discomfort, vague pain in the eyes, neck, head & shoulders, dryness, blurring & watering of eyes after screen use for longer than two hours at a time. The collection of these symptoms are referred to as digital eye strain. Purpose: To evaluate the prevalence, symptoms and associated risk factors of digital eye strain among undergraduate medical students in a medical college in South India. Material & Methods: This was a cross sectional study conducted among undergraduate medical students of a medical college located in south India using structured questionnaire administered through online social media. Results: 596 students responded to this questionnaire. Out of these 596 respondents, 351 students(58.89%) reported experiencing the symptoms of DES. Eye strain (34.10%),frequent headache(28.9%),rubbing of eyes (26.0%),watering (21.3%), burning sensation in eye(17.4%), redness (11.4%)were the symptoms reported by the subjects. Prolonged Use of digital devices, presence of refractive errors and inadequate use of photochromic spectacles and dependence on social media for academic and recreational purposes were the important causes for development of DES.