Hi everyone, I’m Dr Pricilla and I’m Dr Andy. We’re both optometrists.
You haven’t seen me before but I’ve definitely been around.
Previously, I’ve been behind the scenes, working on lighting
totally legit!
Handling the camera
and editing -videos but I'm also here now so Pricilla doesn’t have to look at my face all the time when she’s talking.
But - I digress.
During this epidemic we’re all getting used to this new normal.
We are staying at home more, spending more time on screens
and most importantly wearing face masks. And because more people are wearing masks
for extended periods of time it has been noted that there has been an increased
number of patient complaints of dry eye symptoms among regular mask wearers.
These symptoms can involve - dry, watery, itchy, stingy,
sore, gritty eyes, that can also be red, sensitive to light or cause you
to have vision that may change with each blink or fluctuate throughout the day.
A Canadian researcher by the name of Professor Lyndon Jones at the Centre for Ocular Research and
Education, short for CORE, a great acronym… has intelligently coined his own equally great acronym
dubbing this new phenomenon mask-associated dry eyes, or, MADE, for short. I can just imagine
Jones chuckling to himself about how smart and witty he is coming up with such a name.
Since this is a newly reported phenomenon there hasn’t been too much extensive research on this
yet - but there are a few working theories on what causes this.. Apart from the dry eyes
symptoms, the other concern with MADE is that due to the irritated eyes, people are more likely to
rub their eyes for relief, potentially bringing their unclean hands to their face area increasing
the likelihood of coronavirus transmission through the mouth, nose or eyes. With this in mind though,
transmission of coronavirus through the eyes is quite low, lower than the mouth or nose.
What causes MADE then?
Well, there are a few potential causes.
The first suspected cause of MADE is due to an improperly fitting mask,
which can allow for a gap to form between face and the mask. Gaps created around the
cheek area can allow air to escape and funnel through towards the eye when you breathe out,
causing an air current over the surface of your eyes. This can cause your tear
film to evaporate faster, and over time can leave your eyes irritated and dry.
However, people with properly fitted masks have
also reported dry eyes - so what’s the deal with that?
Well for this situation, this may be due to the use of tape over the mask to get that better seal.
The tape adhering the mask onto the face, can pull the lower eyelids down, impacting on the
normal movement of the lower eyelids which is important for a complete blink. Because the act
of blinking lubricates the surface of the eyes with your tears, when you have restricted lid
movement you can end up getting something called an incomplete blink, which is literally what it
says it is. This leaves certain areas of your eyes dry due to the lack of tear distribution.
So be careful where you are taping the mask to make sure it doesn’t pull your eyelids down.
Sometimes it might be difficult to figure out where the cause of your dry eye symptoms are.
Is it really the mask, more screen time or can it be something else?
If you feel like you are experiencing MADE, you can ask yourselves these questions:
Firstly, Are you wearing your face mask more often and for extended periods of time?
Are your symptoms worse on days where you're wearing your mask?
Are you using tape with the mask and is
that causing discomfort when you blink? If you’re answering yes to any of these,
it can possibly be MADE. In saying this, we are not saying to not wear your mask. MAKE SURE YOU
WEAR YOUR MASK Because masks are the best way to keep yourself and others safe from COVID-19.
If you are experiencing MADE, you don’t need to suffer. There are things you
can do to reduce or alleviate the symptoms. Firstly, make sure you wear a well fitted mask that won’t
have any air leakage through the top of the mask. This may also mean you won’t need to use tape to
stick the mask down. There are masks with pliable nose-wiring that you can mould it to fit your face
shape and also there are masks with adjustable ear loops to get a tighter fit to reduce air leakage.
If you do need to use tape, make sure you carefully tape it so it doesn’t interfere
with your blinking. Tape it closer to the cheeks and away from the eyelids.
If you experience symptoms of MADE use lubricating eye drops to remoisturise the surface.
You can ask your optometrist what they recommend. As we have said in previous videos, some of
our picks are: systane complete or hyloforte. Fourth tip, you can also wear sealed goggles with your mask,
This keeps the moisture of your eyes in and protects your eyes from the air flow.
Number five, if you can, take breaks from masks if possible and also take regular breaks
from your devices as well. Lastly, limit time in air-conditioned
environments when you can because the air conditioner will cause more tear evaporation.
We hope you found this video interesting and learnt something new about wearing masks.
If you liked this video give us a like and subscribe and hit the notification bell.
Stay safe, social distance, wash your hands and we’ll catch you in the next video.
Hi everyone, I'm Dr Pricilla. And I'm Dr Andy.
And we're both optometrists!
Cut.
That was terri...