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Blinking and normal ocular surface in school-aged children and the effects of age and screen time

Ngozi Charity Chidi-Egboka1, Isabelle Jalbert2, Peter Wagner2

  • 1School of Optometry and Vision Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia n.chidi-egboka@unsw.edu.au.

The British Journal of Ophthalmology
|August 24, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Blinking in children is not affected by digital device use or age. Faster blink rates correlate with increased tear volume, and tear function improves with age, indicating ongoing ocular surface development in childhood.

Area of Science:

  • Ophthalmology
  • Pediatric eye care
  • Ocular surface disease

Background:

  • Understanding ocular surface characteristics in children is crucial for early detection and management of eye conditions.
  • Blinking is a fundamental protective mechanism for the ocular surface, yet its dynamics in children are not fully understood.
  • The impact of modern digital device usage on pediatric blinking patterns warrants investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To characterize spontaneous blinking patterns in children aged 6-15 years.
  • To investigate the relationship between blinking, ocular surface symptoms, and clinical measures.
  • To explore associations between blinking, age, and digital device use in pediatric populations.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sectional study involving 45 children (6-15 years) assessed ocular surface symptoms and clinical indices.
  • Blink rate and interblink interval were measured in situ using a wearable eye-tracking headset.
  • Bivariate and partial correlations were used to examine associations between blinking, ocular surface parameters, age, and digital device use.

Main Results:

  • Mean blink rate was 20.5 blinks/min with an interblink interval of 2.9 seconds.
  • No significant relationship was found between blinking patterns, age, sex, or digital device use.
  • Greater tear volume correlated with a faster blink rate and shorter interblink interval; tear function improved with age.

Conclusions:

  • In situ blinking in children is not influenced by age or habitual digital device use.
  • Faster blinking is linked to increased tear volume, but not necessarily to reported ocular symptoms.
  • Findings suggest that ocular surface development, including tear function, continues throughout childhood.
Abstract

Keywords:
child health (paediatrics)corneaocular surfacetears

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