Dry eye masky syndrome: degree of expression and possibilities of correction

   To prevent the spread of COVID-19, to ensure the safety of ourselves and others, personal protective equipment — various types of masks — has firmly entered our daily lives.

   Purpose to conduct a clinical and sociological study of the severity of the dry eye syndrome in medical personnel and medical students against the background of the use of personal protective equipment and to assess the possibilities of its correction using tear replacement therapy.

   Materials and methods. 138 medical staff and 149 students were analyzed. A survey was conducted to identify risk factors for the development of the dry eye syndrome. The total tear production was determined using the Schirmer I test at the beginning and after 8 hours of the working day in medical personnel and students before and after a 6-hour lesson. To study the possibility of correcting the dry eye syndrome, students were offered instillations of the tear substitute Gylan 0.18 % 3 times a day. At this stage of the study, 2 questionnaires were used to assess the severity of DES symptoms: OSDI and DEQ, Schirmer I test.

   Results. Most of the study participants noted the constant wearing of masks (86.4 % of doctors and 84.8 % of nurses). At the beginning of the study, 45.1 % of doctors and 51.9 % of nursing staff, 45.6 % of students had indicators of total tear production below the reference values. At the end of working hours, doctors (90.9 %), nurses (88.6 %) and students (69.2 %) showed a decrease in the total tear production of varying severity. The use of a tear substitute made it possible to increase the indicators of total tear production: 10 days after treatment, an increase was observed in 45.7 % of cases (but the values were in the range of 10—14 mm), in 31.4 % of cases they reached 15 mm or more and exceeded the initial values (p < 0.05); reduce the symptoms of dry eye: the number of students with DEQ questionnaire syndrome dry eye at the beginning of the study (62.9 %) decreased by 3.2 times.

   Conclusions: the conducted study allows us to speak about the currently available riskfactorfor the development of the dry eye syndrome: personal respiratory protective equipment has a negative impact on the indicators of total tear production. Appointment of tear replacement therapy allowed to improve the functional indicators of tears and quality of life. It is necessary to develop and implement measures aimed at identifying and preventing the development of the dry eye syndrome not only among medical personnel, but also among the population as a whole.

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