More than 60% of Spaniards suffer from dry eyes

He 62.6 percent of Spaniards suffer from moderate or severe dry eyes, a condition that is related to prevalence of digital life todayaccording to a study presented this Wednesday by the Vision and Life association, supported by the Contactology Forum and Correos Express.

“What also surprises us is that the youngest, also because they are more intensive in general in the use of screensthey are giving us higher results,” said the optician-optometrist and coordinator of Visión y Vida, Elisenda Ibáñez, during an online press conference.

The study, based on the responses of 1,437 people to the OSDI questionnaire, shows that the prevalence of dry eyes in young people is 69.4 percent, a figure “practically equal” to that of older people (72 percent), who usually suffer from pathological dry eyes.

Although the Spanish average in dry eyes is at 30.1 points of the aforementioned test, that of young people is at 35.1 points, even higher than the 34.9 of the over 65 years; Only 37.3 percent of the population does not show significant symptoms of dry eyes.

“What we are seeing is that environmental or acquired dryness is beginning to be more frequent than pathological dryness and at younger ages, and that worries us,” added Ibáñez.

44 percent of those surveyed say they experience light sensitivity frequently, with 7.1 percent feeling it all the time, 10.8 percent almost all the time, and 26.1 percent half the time.

Another of the most frequent symptoms is feeling of having grit in your eyeswith 34 percent feeling it frequently; followed by the blurred vision (33.7 percent); or eye pain (24.3 percent). Dry eyes cause discomfort mainly due to exposure to wind (42.2 percent), air conditioning (41.3 percent) and low humidity (37 percent).

Normalization of symptoms

Ibáñez has explained that these symptoms can be confused with other problems, and help is often not sought because it is believed that it is visual fatigue and not a condition, which makes its diagnosis difficult and treatment is delayed.

“Irritation, stinging, gritty sensation, blurred vision, photophobia… These are some of the symptoms associated with this visual problem and, in general, they tend to normalize. Many times they are associated with other problems, such as fatigue and stress,” said the president of Visión y Vida, Salvador Alsina.

All of this has to do with a current lifestyle based on a “very digitalized” environment and with “intensive” use of screens, which causes a 50 percent reduction in blinking and increases the exposed eye area, since when looking at a screen the vision is directed upward, which favors the evaporation of tears.

“Furthermore, we passed 80 percent of our time in closed spaces, with low ambient humidity and heating or ventilation systemswhich increases this problem. At the end of the day, we have accumulated visual fatigue that ends up affecting the renewal of our tear film,” added Alsina.

This situation is aggravated among contact lens users, with the symptoms associated with dry eyes being the main reason for abandoning this optical equipment, which is why the association has recalled the importance of the review and consultation with the optician-optometrist in case of noticing any symptoms, as well as using the OSDI questionnaire to do a prior screening at home.

Likewise, they have stressed that dry eyes can be improved “enormously” with the use of artificial tears and with visual education for the use of screens, using the 20-20-20 rest rule (every 20 minutes of screen use, look at an object 20 feet away, about 6 meters away, for at least 20 seconds), ergonomics, environmental humidity, among others.

Andalusia, the most affected CCAA

The report also shows that Andalusia is the autonomous community with the highest prevalence of moderate or severe drynesswith 69.3 percent suffering from it, followed by the Valencian Community (68 percent) and the Community of Madrid (67.8 percent). Catalonia closes the table with a prevalence of 54.4 percent.

The data also reveal differences by sexand women are 5.7 percentage points higher than men in prevalence of discomfort due to dry eyes.

While 53.3 percent of men place their level of affectation between moderate and severe, the number of women who consider it this way amounts to 66.4 percent.