EYE-I-DEALS
Karen Detwiler, O.D.,P.A.
Doctor of Optometry
410 W. Tennessee
Street
Tallahassee, FL 32301
(850)561-8776
kdetwiler@hcsmail.com
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HomeComputer Vision Problems
I'd love to hear your thoughts and feedback: kdetwiler@hcsmail.com
Computer Vision Problems
What is it?
Eyestrain caused when the computer and your eyes fight each other creating a variety of problems. They are:
- eye fatigue at the end of the day
- headaches
- burning, red, dry, irritated eyes
- blurring of the monitor
- double vision
- backaches, neck spasms
- blurring at near or distance
- distorted color vision
The good news is these symptoms can be solved, and easily.
Occupational Concerns
- 90% of work performed today in the office is visual in nature.
- According to NIOSH study, nine out of ten computer-using patients tell doctors that Eyestrain is their main complaint.
- 30% of all office workers on computer have uncorrected or under corrected vision problems.
- 40% of glasses in eye doctors offices are computer prescriptions.
- By the Year 2000, 75% of all office workers will be on computers.
- It costs $1.9 billion a year for U.S. companies to fix CVS.
Questions to Ask Yourself (And Answers to Take to Your Eye Doctor)
- How many hours/day am I on the computer?
- What is the lighting in my workplace?
- What symptoms am I experiencing?
- What medications am I taking?
- How far are my eyes from the computer screen?
- Work tasks--data entry vs word processing?
Helpful Hints
- Get an eye exam. If you wear glasses, make sure they meet the demands of your computer.
- Your blink rates decreases by about half when you work on your computer.
- So remind yourself to blink a lot and use lots of artificial tears.
- Make sure your monitor size equals your workload. A 15-inch monitor is fine for word-processing tasks. A 17/19-inch monitor is best if you work several documents at once or with large spreadsheets.
- Place the computer screen in front of you if you work mainly from it, and if you work mainly with paper sources, place them in front and the terminal to the side.
- The screen should be at least 26-inches away from you and the top of the screen 2 to 3-inches below eye level.
- Use shades and blinds on windows to control glare and reflections.
- Clean your computer screen regularly to decrease dust and fingerprints.
- Take breaks--for a moderate workload take a fifteen minute break every two hours--for heavy workloads take a fifteen minute break every hour.
- Close your eyes or focus your eyes at a distance.
Links To Related Sites
The following are links to sites related to computer vision problems:
2. Exercises for carpal tunnel syndrome (Ivanhoe Broadcast News, Inc., Medical Breakthroughs - click on "Archives" and then search for "Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.")
3. PC Magni-Viewer (A Bausch and Lomb product that magnifies the computer screen 175 percent)
4. PBA's Home Eye Safety Checklist
FOR MORE INFORMATION AND AN COMPUTER VISION VISUAL EXAMINATION PLEASE CALL OUR OFFICE FOR AN APPOINTMENT!
Eye-I-Deals
410 West Tennessee Street
Tallahassee, FL 32301