According to the authors of a recent study on eye health in children after virtual school, adults may need to modify their own digital practices to prevent similar eye problems. 

Judith Lavrich, M.D., a clinical assistant professor at Thomas Jefferson University and practicing ophthalmologist, and Jordan Hamburger, a fourth-year medical student at Thomas Jefferson University, explained the implications of their research to The American Journal of Managed Care.

Will Aging Americans’ Increased Screen Presence Strain Eye Care?

Dr. Lavrich isn’t sure whether our aging population’s rising screen time will strain eye care, but she believes eye specialists should be aware that patients’ visual and eye health complaints could stem from rising screen time, and they should be ready to refer for proper treatment. 

In her and Hamburger’s study, 17% of the virtual classroom children they examined complained of symptoms matching convergence insufficiency, involving trouble moving and keeping the eyes focused inward. Identifying and treating this problem appropriately may help to ease symptoms, she says. Therefore, greater awareness of this problem is needed, along with how best to alleviate symptoms. This could entail enlarging font size, for example, though more research is needed.

Study: ‘The Visual Consequences of Virtual School’

The authors’ study, “The Visual Consequences of Virtual School: Acute Eye Symptoms in Healthy Children,” presented at the 2021 American Academy of Ophthalmology Conference, arose from observing numerous child complaints of eye problems during the COVID-19 pandemic. Digital use during this time was unusually high due to virtual schooling, so the authors sought to find out whether these eye complaints were, in fact, greater than normal and due to increased screen time.

• The investigators enrolled 110 healthy children enrolled in a minimum of one day a week of virtual school, ranging from three to 10 hours a day. 
• The students were surveyed for any increase in eye symptoms after each day of virtual learning. 

The authors were surprised to find a significant increase in eye symptoms after just one virtual school day:

• Sixty-one percent (61%) of children indicated eye issues related to binocularity, which was proportional to their length of time online.
• Fifty-three percent (53%) of children indicated eye issues related to ocular surface discomfort. 

More Research Needed

The authors noted the drawbacks of their study. They made many inferences from healthy children to different adult populations and scenarios using various digital technologies. There were also just 110 participants in the study who were only able to be studied after one day of virtual learning. 

Lavrich said there needs to be further study before definitive conclusions and solutions can be drawn. Nevertheless, they witnessed significant acute eye problems in children after just one virtual school session—a “very significant finding,’ said Hamburger.

*Melillo, G. (2022, February 28). Researchers: Future Investigations on Screen Time, Eye Health Are Warranted. The American Journal of Managed Care. https://www.ajmc.com/view/researchers-future-investigations-on-screen-time-eye-health-are-warranted