The efficacy of eye care for ventilated patients: outline of an experimental comparative research pilot study

The aim in this study was to investigate the efficacy of eye care given to mechanically ventilated and unconscious patients in an intensive care unit; and to answer the research question: "Is eye surface integrity maintained after the application of a "Geliperm" dressing to the closed eye of a ventilated patient?' Six patients formed the sample group. In each patient one eye received standard eye care, forming the control group, and the other eye received a 'geliperm' dressing, forming the treatment group. Tear production, using the Schirmer test, and the degree of eye surface staining by rose bengal were used as the measurement indicators. As a pilot study this project was primarily concerned with establishing a sound methodology for further enquiry. There were some difficulties in validating the degree of rose bengal staining; no statistically significant difference could be demonstrated between outcomes of the two forms of eye care after a 24-hour test period, with a P = 0.05 significance level, using the Mann-Whitney-U test. It should be noted, however, that the sample size was too small to measure a statistically significant change or its absence, in either the treatment or control eye between pre- and post-test results, with the same significance level, and using the Wilcoxon signed rank test. This study does provide evidence to support the need for eye care for critically ill patients. The methodology may offer a way forward for future investigation in the search for optimal eye surface preservation.