Prevalence and Risk Factors of Dry Eye Syndrome Among Office Workers Using Digital Screens in Dhaka

Open Access

Abstract

Introduction: Dry eye syndrome (DES) is a disturbance of the eye surface with multiple causes, usually resulting in unstable tear film, eye discomfort and impaired vision, which may adversely impact one's daily life and work efficiency, among other things. That is why we conducted this research. The purpose of this research was to find out the prevalence of dry eye syndrome and exposure to risk factors of the condition among office workers, who use digital screens, in Dhaka. Methods & Materials: This cross-sectional observational study was carried out at the Department of Ophthalmology, Raipura Upazila Health Complex, Norshingdi, Bangladesh from July 2025 to December 2025 involving 60 office workers of Dhaka who regularly used computer display screens in their jobs. Dry eye syndrome was identified through the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) questionnaire that has already been validated, and the extent of symptoms was divided into mild, moderate, and severe according to standard scoring norms. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS package version 26.0. Result: Most of the 60 office workers involved in the study were between 30 and 39 years old (36.7%), and there were more men than women (56.7%). Most of the participants (66.6%) admitted to spending more than 6 hours per day in front of digital screens. More than half of the participants (53.3%) suffered from dry eye syndrome, and among them, many had mild (43.8%) to moderate (37.5%) symptoms. Prolonged screen time, air-conditioned workplace environments, and infrequent blinking turned out to be the major factors contributing to dry eye (p<0.05), whereas gender and contact lens use, among other aspects, showed no significant differences. Conclusion: This research shows that dry eye syndrome is very common (53.3%) among office workers using digital screens in Dhaka. Most of the cases are mild to moderate in severity. The results point out that people who work actively, especially those who spend more than 6 hours a day in front of the screen, have a higher chance to suffer from this problem.