Assessment of Causes of Eyestrain in Smartphone Users

Abstract

ABSTRACT:To evaluate the asthenopic symptoms in smartphone users, a study was carried out in the College of Ophthalmology and Allied Vision Sciences (Mayo Hospital) Lahore from May to July 2018. This Cross-Sectional study was done with 250 people both from medical and non-medical backgrounds. In the study, out of 250 cases 138 (55.2%) were related to non-medical (university students of different disciplines) and the rest 112 individuals (44.8%) belonged to the medical field. Individuals of the average age of 26.91 ± 3.90 years were considered that had been using the smartphone for the last one year. Eye-problems like headaches, eye strain, double vision, redness, watery eyes, and blurred vision were recorded in 202 (80.8%) cases. Data were analyzed using Chisquare and Fisher's exact test methods. SPSS (version 21) was used and significant (p < 0.05) differences were found in symptoms that were significantly associated with age and smartphone usage time. It was concluded by the study that asthenopic symptoms were mostly found in adults who were using smartphones for more than 3-4 hours per day without any break, whether they belonged to the medical or non-medical field.