Rubbing your eyes too regularly can cause keratoconus, a deformation of the cornea.
A seemingly innocuous gesture that can become unhealthy: rubbing your eyes is often a reflex, doing it too frequently could harm your eye health. Keratoconus, a corneal disease, is linked to this movement.
Fatigue, long period of time in front of a screen, allergy… There are many reasons for rubbing your eyes. The Rothschild Foundation carried out a video thanks to MRIs to explain the consequences of these frictions on the cornea. “The images are impressive, specifies the commentary of the video, and show how the cornea but also the eyeball as a whole and the orbit are abused by the simple act of rubbing the eyes. According to the researchers behind these images, it is necessary to understand why some corneas are more resistant than others to repeated friction.
Corneal surgery as a last resort
Keratoconus is a progressive deformation of the cornea. Gradually, it becomes thinner and metamorphoses: instead of having a spherical shape, it becomes conical. This can cause vision problems such as myopia, increased sensitivity to light or eye irritation. In 90% of cases, both eyes are affected. Teenagers are most often affected. According to the Toulouse University Hospitalthere will be approximately one case diagnosed for every 2,000 inhabitants each year in France.
Wearing glasses is the first recommended treatment, followed by contact lenses if this fails. When these devices remain insufficient, corneal surgery is considered.
Warn children
Damien Gatinel, ophthalmic surgeon at the Rothschild Foundation, clarifies at the microphone ofEuropean 1 : “you really have to explain to the children that it’s not good to do that with your knuckles and clenched fists”. The ideal remains to be limited to the corner of the eye, even if, to avoid any risk, it would be better not to touch the eyes at all. According to the specialist, too frequent rubbing of the eyes can also aggravate myopia, glaucoma or increase the risk of infection.
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