Symptoms include:
- Blurry or fluctuating vision
- Eyestrain or discomfort
- Headaches
- Dry or scratchy eyes
- Neck or shoulder pain
Even if your symptoms are mild, they can worsen over time. Our optometrists, Dr. Orr and Dr. Yu, can help improve your visual comfort while you work.
Diagnosis and Treatment of Computer Vision Syndrome
The severity and length of computer vision syndrome symptoms depends on how long you stare at the computer, your head/neck/eye posture, lighting or glare, the angle and distance of the monitor, and other diagnosed or undiagnosed vision problems. If you already suffer from astigmatism, farsightedness, presbyopia, or eye health conditions, your computer vision symptoms may worsen. Many regular eyeglasses and contact lenses are not designed to deflect the problems caused by computer screens.
Our optometrists will take your symptoms, pre-existing conditions, and potential undiagnosed conditions into account as they perform the appropriate testing. From these measurements, our optometrists can design a treatment plan to help relieve your symptoms. For people with otherwise normal eyes and vision, a set of specially-designed computer glasses can be very helpful. For patients already wearing contacts or glasses, more computer-friendly prescriptions can be made. In addition to these treatment options, there are many things we can suggest to cut down on computer vision syndrome symptoms:
- Computer setup— We recommend sitting or standing at the computer with appropriate and comfortable head and eye posture.
- Lighting—We recommend trying to minimize glare, use natural lighting, and have appropriate external lights on whenever possible.
- Breaks—We recommend the 20/20/20 rule - for every 20 minutes of work, look 20 feet away (across the room or outside the window) for 20 seconds to refocus and relax your eyes. We also recommend to consciously blink more frequently to keep your eyes moist.
With a combination of the proper care from our optometrists and self-care, you can minimize computer vision syndrome and be more comfortable at your work. Contact us for an appointment today.