The effects of mild ocular surface stimulation and concentration on spontaneous blink parameters.

AbstractPurpose: This exploratory, pilot study compared the effects of concentrating on a visual task and a very mild ocular surface air stimulus on multiple blink parameters.Methods: Ten subjects participated in this study. There were two visits, one with an ocular surface air stimulus (AS) and one without (NS). The AS was set at a level barely perceptible by subjects (approximately 0.6 m/s at the eye). At each visit, subjects performed a high-concentration (HC) and low-concentration (LC) task. Blinking was tracked and tear-film breakup (TBU) was monitored simultaneously to measure blink parameters, including the interblink interval (IBI), blink amplitude, duration, maximum velocity and TBU before and after each blink.Results: During the HC tasks, IBI was significantly higher and blink duration was lower (repeated measures ANOVA, p < 0.05) than the LC tasks. The IBI in the AS-LC condition was significantly lower and less variable than in the NS-HC condition, whereas blink duration showed the opposite eff...