School of Optometry, Indiana University , Bloomington, IN , USA .
Curr Eye Res. 2014 Jan;39(1):9-20. doi: 10.3109/02713683.2013.822896. Epub 2013 Sep 18.
This exploratory, pilot study compared the effects of concentrating on a visual task and a very mild ocular surface air stimulus on multiple blink parameters.
Ten subjects participated in this study. There were two visits, one with an ocular surface air stimulus (AS) and one without (NS). The AS was set at a level barely perceptible by subjects (approximately 0.6 m/s at the eye). At each visit, subjects performed a high-concentration (HC) and low-concentration (LC) task. Blinking was tracked and tear-film breakup (TBU) was monitored simultaneously to measure blink parameters, including the interblink interval (IBI), blink amplitude, duration, maximum velocity and TBU before and after each blink.
During the HC tasks, IBI was significantly higher and blink duration was lower (repeated measures ANOVA, p < 0.05) than the LC tasks. The IBI in the AS-LC condition was significantly lower and less variable than in the NS-HC condition, whereas blink duration showed the opposite effect (Hotelling T² test, p < 0.005). There was high individual variation in correlations between blink amplitude and maximum velocity. The area of TBU was not significantly correlated with any blink parameter.
The lack of correlation between TBU and blinking suggests that many blinks are stimulated by internal controls, rather than direct stimulation of the ocular surface by TBU. This pilot study suggests that even very mild ocular surface stimulation produces opposite effects on the timing and duration of the blink, when compared to concentrating on a visual task. The HC task tends to decrease blink frequency and duration, presumably to minimize interruption by the eyelids, whereas mild ocular surface AS increased blink frequency and duration, most likely to increase protection of the ocular surface.
本探索性、初步研究比较了专注于视觉任务和极轻微眼表面空气刺激对多种眨眼参数的影响。
10 名受试者参与了这项研究。共有两次就诊，一次有眼表面空气刺激（AS），一次没有（NS）。AS 的设置水平被受试者勉强感知（大约 0.6 m/s 在眼部）。在每次就诊时，受试者进行高浓度（HC）和低浓度（LC）任务。同时跟踪眨眼并监测泪膜破裂（TBU），以测量眨眼参数，包括眨眼间隔（IBI）、眨眼幅度、持续时间、最大速度以及每次眨眼前后的 TBU。
在 HC 任务中，IBI 显著高于 LC 任务，眨眼持续时间显著降低（重复测量方差分析，p < 0.05）。在 AS-LC 条件下的 IBI 明显低于 NS-HC 条件下的 IBI，眨眼持续时间则相反（Hotelling T²检验，p < 0.005）。眨眼幅度和最大速度之间的相关性存在高度个体差异。TBU 的面积与任何眨眼参数均无显著相关性。
TBU 与眨眼之间缺乏相关性表明，许多眨眼是由内部控制刺激的，而不是由 TBU 直接刺激眼表面。这项初步研究表明，与专注于视觉任务相比，即使是非常轻微的眼表面刺激也会对眨眼的时间和持续时间产生相反的影响。HC 任务往往会降低眨眼频率和持续时间，大概是为了尽量减少眼睑的干扰，而轻微的眼表面 AS 则增加了眨眼频率和持续时间，很可能是为了增加对眼表面的保护。
