Using a screen filter positively influences the physical well-being of VDU operators

Sixty full-time VDU workers participated in a field study concerned with the effects of antiglare screen filter on the occurrence, duration, and intensity of eye and physical complaints. Forty of them were given a screen filter, the remaining 20 worked without filter. Two types of questionnaires were administered both prior to the installation of filters, and after one month of their use. The first inquired about the occurrence and duration of complaints during the last month, the other one measured their intensity on three days in the morning, before lunch and at the end of the working day. The intensity scores were corrected for hours worked at VDU on the day concerned. The filter and control group did not differ in age, gender, years of work experience at VDU, type of work task, self-reported overall health, eye conditions, and ergonomic layout of the workstation. The differences between the initial and final measurement were processed for each group separately by applying t-tests for paired samples, and both groups were compared by an analysis-of-variance test. Whereas the control group did not show any significant change, the participants in filter group reported less occurrence, shorter duration, and less intensive eye and musculoskeletal complaints after one month of filter use. It may be concluded that screen filters improve the conditions for the visual perception of the VDU, thus relieving eye strain, and that they positively influence the working posture and help relieve musculoskeletal complaints as well.