Abstract
Purpose: To explore a potential correlation between the position of the head of a sleeping individual and the (presence) of a unilateral ectropion or entropion. Method: A retrospective case series. Data were collected from all patients who had undergone repair of an involutional ectropion or entropion between 2004 and 2017 from all causes at the Soroka University Medical Center. Results: Thirty-six patients were available for participation in the survey received a telephone questionnaire regarding their sleep position and preference. The questionnaire was aimed to determine the patient's quality of sleep, position, and side preference while asleep. The ectropion group includes 16 patients who have had a statistically significant positive association between the preference of a head posture during sleep and the development of a unilateral ectropion (χ=6.11, p<0.05). There was no statistically significant correlation between head position preference and entropion occurrence. Conclusions: This study firstly demonstrates the correlation between sleep position preference and the risk of developing an involutional ectropion.
Highlights
The relationship between sleeping position and the risk of various diseases is well known
Remaining on one side for prolonged periods may increase the potential for developing different pathologies related to changes in mechanical pressure, relative hypoxia and stretching of the tissues
Sleep position of the head has been associated with several ophthalmic pathologies; primarily the floppy eyelid syndrome (FES), the dry eye and meibomian gland dysfunction, keratoconus, and primary open-angle glaucoma may be related [6,7,8,9]
Summary
The relationship between sleeping position and the risk of various diseases is well known. Remaining on one side for prolonged periods may increase the potential for developing different pathologies related to changes in mechanical pressure, relative hypoxia and stretching of the tissues. There is evidence indicating that the link between sleeping position and morbidity may be much more extensive, affecting many systems in the body. Several papers have shown a correlation between different morbidities and sleeping postures [3,4,5,6,7]. Sleep position of the head has been associated with several ophthalmic pathologies; primarily the floppy eyelid syndrome (FES), the dry eye and meibomian gland dysfunction, keratoconus, and primary open-angle glaucoma may be related [6,7,8,9]. Various mechanisms have been suggested, among them that prolonged mechanical pressure causes hypoxia and continual and cumulative damage to the tissues [10]
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