The real danger

The real danger
 

Dain also debunks the oft-heard myths about UV rays and the 'bogey of radiation' in relation to computer use. In both cases, he says that the amounts involved are well below any perceived risk to occupational safety standards. 'Hearing people talking about the dangers of these things makes me quite angry,' he says, 'because it is unnecessarily creating industrial stress.'

The only real danger to the eyes associated with computer use, according to Dain, is 'eye strain' (a term Dain admits is misleading) technically known 'asthenopia'. Although he says this cannot cause permanent damage to the eyes, it is a significant OHS problem, affecting up to 60 per cent of those who use computers in their work.

'Our research has not turned up anything clear which predisposes someone to suffering symptoms of eye fatigue. The number one factor in someone suffering visual symptoms is how much stress the sufferer is experiencing. The other thing to note is that symptom reporting is age-related. People who are older tend to complain less of visual discomfort,' he says.

'Eye strain is really a misleading term for what we are talking about, because it suggests physical damage, which it is not. It's a symptom that represents subjective fatigue, not a symptom of damage. After a day at the computer, an employee's eyes may feel terrible, but the next day they will be okay again,' Dain says.

'So there is no physical damage, but that doesn't mean there aren't a lot of people having a lot of problems that workplaces must address. For organisations wanting to minimise visual and ocular discomfort, there are a range of issues to consider.'

The first problem he cites is dryness of the eyes. 'When you do sustained work you tend to blink less and this is an even greater problem with computer work because it is always ready to go; there are no pages to turn or breaks required. The humidity in an airconditioned office exacerbates the problem and the tear film over the eye can dry out. One solution is to get the screen to blank every few moments as a reminder to blink. Taking breaks, as with any repetitive work, is also vital.

'It is important that people follow the standards to do with ergonomics, lighting, screen colour and so on,' Dain says, although this will not correct all eye fatigue problems. 'In the Telecom research, the ergonomics were right, but still 25 per cent of the employees had visual discomfort symptoms. It was concerning to note that many of those same employees had not had eyes checked in past two years,' he says.

The relevant standard on screen-based equipment is AS 3590. Part I is focused on the screen, Part II on the workstation and Part III on the input devices.

'Glare can be corrected with 'guards' or anti-reflection coating, but in many cases, problems of screen glare can be corrected by lighting and avoiding windows,' Dain adds.

So aside from taking breaks, following standards and correcting workstation and office design, what can people do to prevent eye fatigue at the computer?

'We notice that people are still getting a computer and placing it on their old desk in a traditional office environment. The problem is that the height of the deck you need for writing is different to the height required for a keyboard. In this respect, laptops are a problem, because they attach the screen to the keyboard, when they need to be at different heights for ergonomic reasons. In addition, people are all different heights, which needs to be taken into account as well,' Dain says.