Prolonged facemask wearing among hospital workers and dry eye – a mixed-methods study
Abstract Background Prolonged facemask wearing may have negatively affected essential workers with dry eye. We conducted a mixed-methods study to examine and understand the associations of the ocular surface, periocular environment, and dry eye-related symptoms among hospital workers across the job...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2023-10-01
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| Series: | BMC Ophthalmology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12886-023-03153-3 |
| _version_ | 1797453498459095040 |
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| author | Tianjing Li Paul M. McCann Sarah Wilting Steve McNamara Darren G. Gregory Scott G. Hauswirth Cristos Ifantides Lorie Benning Tamara A. Sequeira Riaz Qureshi Su-Hsun Liu Melissa A. Clark Ian J. Saldanha Alison G. Abraham |
| author_facet | Tianjing Li Paul M. McCann Sarah Wilting Steve McNamara Darren G. Gregory Scott G. Hauswirth Cristos Ifantides Lorie Benning Tamara A. Sequeira Riaz Qureshi Su-Hsun Liu Melissa A. Clark Ian J. Saldanha Alison G. Abraham |
| author_sort | Tianjing Li |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Prolonged facemask wearing may have negatively affected essential workers with dry eye. We conducted a mixed-methods study to examine and understand the associations of the ocular surface, periocular environment, and dry eye-related symptoms among hospital workers across the job spectrum with prolonged facemask use. Methods We recruited clinical and non-clinical hospital workers with self-reported symptoms of dry eye and prolonged facemask use. We measured symptoms using the 5-item Dry Eye Questionnaire and the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI). Objective ocular signs included corneal and conjunctival staining, fluorescein tear break up time (TBUT), meibography, tear film interferometry, and periocular humidity. We compared symptoms and signs across levels of periocular humidity, dry eye severity, facemask type, and job type. Participants with moderate or severe dry eye symptoms (OSDI > = 23) were invited for a semi-structured, one-on-one interview. Results We enrolled 20 clinical and 21 non-clinical hospital workers: 27% were 40 years or older, 76% were female, 29% reported a race other than White, and 20% were Hispanic. Seventeen individuals participated in the semi-structured interviews. From the quantitative analyses, we found that 90% of participants reported worsened severity of dry eye at work due to facemasks. Although wearing facemasks resulted in higher periocular humidity levels compared with not wearing facemasks, 66% participants reported increased airflow over their eyes. Findings from the qualitative interviews supported the finding that use of facemasks worsened dry eye symptoms, especially when facemasks were not fitted around the nose. The data did not suggest that non-clinical hospital workers experienced a greater impact of dry eye than clinical workers. Conclusions Healthcare providers and patients with dry eye should be educated about the discomfort and the ocular surface health risks associated with inadequately fitted facemasks. Wearing a fitted facemask with a pliable nose wire appears to mitigate the upward airflow. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T15:23:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-bb4d388657ad4c81b9d66da82315dc5b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-2415 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T15:23:43Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Ophthalmology |
| spelling | doaj.art-bb4d388657ad4c81b9d66da82315dc5b2023-11-26T12:39:56ZengBMCBMC Ophthalmology1471-24152023-10-0123111310.1186/s12886-023-03153-3Prolonged facemask wearing among hospital workers and dry eye – a mixed-methods studyTianjing Li0Paul M. McCann1Sarah Wilting2Steve McNamara3Darren G. Gregory4Scott G. Hauswirth5Cristos Ifantides6Lorie Benning7Tamara A. Sequeira8Riaz Qureshi9Su-Hsun Liu10Melissa A. Clark11Ian J. Saldanha12Alison G. Abraham13Department of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusDepartment of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusDepartment of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusDepartment of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusDepartment of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusDepartment of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusDepartment of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusDepartment of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public HealthSurvey Research Center, Brown University School of Public HealthDepartment of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusDepartment of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical CampusDepartment of Health Services, Policy, and Practice, Brown University School of Public HealthDepartment of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public HealthDepartment of Epidemiology, Colorado School of Public HealthAbstract Background Prolonged facemask wearing may have negatively affected essential workers with dry eye. We conducted a mixed-methods study to examine and understand the associations of the ocular surface, periocular environment, and dry eye-related symptoms among hospital workers across the job spectrum with prolonged facemask use. Methods We recruited clinical and non-clinical hospital workers with self-reported symptoms of dry eye and prolonged facemask use. We measured symptoms using the 5-item Dry Eye Questionnaire and the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI). Objective ocular signs included corneal and conjunctival staining, fluorescein tear break up time (TBUT), meibography, tear film interferometry, and periocular humidity. We compared symptoms and signs across levels of periocular humidity, dry eye severity, facemask type, and job type. Participants with moderate or severe dry eye symptoms (OSDI > = 23) were invited for a semi-structured, one-on-one interview. Results We enrolled 20 clinical and 21 non-clinical hospital workers: 27% were 40 years or older, 76% were female, 29% reported a race other than White, and 20% were Hispanic. Seventeen individuals participated in the semi-structured interviews. From the quantitative analyses, we found that 90% of participants reported worsened severity of dry eye at work due to facemasks. Although wearing facemasks resulted in higher periocular humidity levels compared with not wearing facemasks, 66% participants reported increased airflow over their eyes. Findings from the qualitative interviews supported the finding that use of facemasks worsened dry eye symptoms, especially when facemasks were not fitted around the nose. The data did not suggest that non-clinical hospital workers experienced a greater impact of dry eye than clinical workers. Conclusions Healthcare providers and patients with dry eye should be educated about the discomfort and the ocular surface health risks associated with inadequately fitted facemasks. Wearing a fitted facemask with a pliable nose wire appears to mitigate the upward airflow.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12886-023-03153-3Dry eyeHospital workersMixed-methods study |
| spellingShingle | Tianjing Li Paul M. McCann Sarah Wilting Steve McNamara Darren G. Gregory Scott G. Hauswirth Cristos Ifantides Lorie Benning Tamara A. Sequeira Riaz Qureshi Su-Hsun Liu Melissa A. Clark Ian J. Saldanha Alison G. Abraham Prolonged facemask wearing among hospital workers and dry eye – a mixed-methods study BMC Ophthalmology Dry eye Hospital workers Mixed-methods study |
| title | Prolonged facemask wearing among hospital workers and dry eye – a mixed-methods study |
| title_full | Prolonged facemask wearing among hospital workers and dry eye – a mixed-methods study |
| title_fullStr | Prolonged facemask wearing among hospital workers and dry eye – a mixed-methods study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Prolonged facemask wearing among hospital workers and dry eye – a mixed-methods study |
| title_short | Prolonged facemask wearing among hospital workers and dry eye – a mixed-methods study |
| title_sort | prolonged facemask wearing among hospital workers and dry eye a mixed methods study |
| topic | Dry eye Hospital workers Mixed-methods study |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12886-023-03153-3 |
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