Corneal optics after reading, microscopy and computer work.

PURPOSE

To compare lid-induced changes in corneal optics following reading, microscopy and computer work.

METHODS

Nine subjects with normal ocular health were recruited for the study. Five subjects were myopic, two were emmetropic, one was astigmatic and one was hyperopic. Corneal topography was measured before and after 60 mins of reading a novel, performing a blood cell counting task on a microscope and Internet searching. Corneal topography data were used to derive the corneal wavefront Zernike coefficients up to the fourth order. A meridian analysis of instantaneous corneal power along the upper 90-degree semi-meridian was performed to examine local changes caused by eyelid pressure. Digital photography was used to capture body posture and eyelid position during the tasks.

RESULTS

Each of the three tasks showed systematically different effects on both the characteristics and location of corneal topography changes. Reading and microscopy generally exhibited larger and more centrally located changes compared with the computer task. Differences in wavefront aberration characteristics between the three tasks were apparent in both lower and higher order aberrations. The location of corneal distortions differed significantly between microscopy and computer work, with microscopy causing distortions to occur closer to the videokeratoscope measurement axis compared with computer work (p = 0.015).

CONCLUSIONS

Reading, microscopy and computer work have different effects on corneal aberrations. The results are in agreement with the hypothesis that lid-induced corneal aberrations may play a role in myopia development.