Comparison of shielding effects of over-glasses-type and regular eyewear in terms of occupational eye dose reduction.

Given the new recommendations for occupational eye lens doses, various lead glasses have been used to reduce irradiation of interventional radiologists. However, the protection afforded by lead glasses over prescription glasses (thus over-glasses-type eyewear) has not been considered in detail. We used a phantom to compare the protective effects of such eyewear and regular eyewear of 0.07 mm lead-equivalent thickness. The shielding rates behind the eyewear and on the surface of the left eye of an anthropomorphic phantom were calculated. The left eye of the phantom was irradiated at various angles and the shielding effects were evaluated. We measured the radiation dose to the left side of the phantom using RPLDs attached to the left eye and to the surface/back of the left eyewear. Over-glasses-type eyewear afforded good protection against x-rays from the left and below; the average shielding rates on the surface of the left eye ranged from 0.70-0.72. In clinical settings, scattered radiation is incident on physicians' eyes from the left and below, and through any gap in lead glasses. Over-glasses-type eyewear afforded better protection than regular eyewear of the same lead-equivalent thickness at the irradiation angles of concern in clinical settings. Although clinical evaluation is needed, we suggest over-glasses-type Pb eyewear even for physicians who do not wear prescription glasses.

Noise estimation for head-mounted 3D binocular eye tracking using Pupil Core eye-tracking goggles.

Head-mounted, video-based eye tracking is becoming increasingly common and has promise in a range of applications. Here, we provide a practical and systematic assessment of the sources of measurement uncertainty for one such device - the Pupil Core - in three eye-tracking domains: (1) the 2D scene camera image; (2) the physical rotation of the eye relative to the scene camera 3D space; and (3) the external projection of the estimated gaze point location onto the target plane or in relation to world coordinates. We also assess eye camera motion during active tasks relative to the eye and the scene camera, an important consideration as the rigid arrangement of eye and scene camera is essential for proper alignment of the detected gaze. We find that eye camera motion, improper gaze point depth estimation, and erroneous eye models can all lead to added noise that must be considered in the experimental design. Further, while calibration accuracy and precision estimates can help assess data quality in the scene camera image, they may not be reflective of errors and variability in gaze point estimation. These findings support the importance of eye model constancy for comparisons across experimental conditions and suggest additional assessments of data reliability may be warranted for experiments that require the gaze point or measure eye movements relative to the external world.

A Systematic Review on the Effectiveness of Eyewear in Reducing the Incidence and Severity of Eye Injuries in Racket Sports.

PURPOSE: To assess what eyewear (if any) reduces eye injury incidence and severity in squash, racketball, tennis and badminton. DESIGN: Systematic review following the 'Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses' (PRISMA) and the 'implementing Prisma in Exercise, Rehabilitation, Sport medicine and SporTs science' (PERSiST) guidelines. METHODS: PubMed, SportDiscus and Web of Science were searched on 22nd February 2023. All study types except reviews were eligible. Studies had to report the type of eyewear worn (if any) with a form of eye injury incidence and severity. RESULTS: 364 papers were initially retrieved and after the screening process 29 remained. A subgroup analysis was carried out on studies that had a sample size of five or above, were not only looking at a particular type of eye injury and that had sufficient data to allow the percentage of eye injuries that occurred when no eyewear was worn to be calculated. From this analysis, the median percentage of eye injuries that occurred when no eyewear was worn was found to be 93%. Some of these injuries were serious and required complex treatment. Prescription lenses, contact lenses and industrial eyewear made some injuries more severe. In squash and racketball, lensless eye guards were ineffective as the ball could deform on impact, still making contact with the eye. Only eyewear compliant with updated ASTM (or similar) standards was associated with no eye injuries and so provided adequate protection in all four sports. CONCLUSIONS: Although this systematic review only summarizes evidence on injuries requiring hospital treatment, it is recommended that national governing bodies and key decision makers within squash, racketball, tennis and badminton examine the evidence presented and consider extending existing rules or implementing new recommendations and policies on protective eyewear use to reduce eye injury incidence and severity in their sport.

Impaired face symmetry detection under alcohol, but no 'beer goggles' effect.

BACKGROUND: The 'beer goggles' phenomenon describes sexual attraction to individuals when alcohol intoxicated whom we would not desire when sober. One possible explanation of the effect is that alcohol impairs the detection of facial asymmetry, thus lowering the drinker's threshold for physical attraction. AIMS: We therefore tested the hypotheses that higher breath alcohol drinkers would award more generous ratings of attractiveness to asymmetrical faces, and be poorer at discriminating bilateral facial asymmetry than less intoxicated counterparts. METHODS: Ninety-nine male and female bar patrons rated 18 individual faces for attractiveness and symmetry. Each type of rating was given twice, once per face with an enhanced asymmetry and once again for each face in its natural form. Participants then judged which of two same-face versions (one normal, the other perfectly symmetrised) was more attractive and, in the final task, more symmetrical. RESULTS: Alcohol had no influence on attractiveness judgements but higher blood alcohol concentrations were associated with higher symmetry ratings. Furthermore, as predicted, heavily intoxicated individuals were less able to distinguish natural from perfectly symmetrised face versions than more sober drinkers. CONCLUSIONS: Findings therefore suggest alcohol impairs face asymmetry detection, but it seems that this perceptual distortion does not contribute to the 'beer goggles' phenomenon.

Use of Stroboscopic Goggles in Suture Training Improves Precision and Accuracy.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to quantify the impact of intermittent visual occlusion via stroboscopic goggles on suture accuracy and precision. METHODS: This crossover study recruited and randomized 72 graduate students to train with stroboscopic goggles early or late in structured suture practice. Participants completed assessments of 10 running sutures with 2 training sessions between baseline and follow-up assessments. The procedure was repeated after crossover. Suture photos were analyzed using ImageJ. Total error among all measurements represented accuracy; standard deviation of error represented precision. Intra- and inter-group trends were identified with Wilcoxon rank-sum tests. RESULTS: Both groups significantly improved in accuracy in the sessions immediately following goggle use, but the group that used goggles later in training continued improving in accuracy and precision while the group that trained with stroboscopic goggles early plateaued. CONCLUSIONS: Using stroboscopic goggles showed quantifiable benefit for augmenting suture training with greatest effect after initial skill acquisition is completed.

Moisture chamber goggles for the treatment of postoperative dry eye in patients receiving SMILE and FS-LASIK surgery.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of refractive surgery-related dry eye disease (DED) is rising due to the increasing popularity of corneal refractive surgery. The moisture chamber goggles (MCGs) have been shown to tear evaporation by increasing local humidity and minimizing airflow. The current study aims to evaluate the efficacy of moisture chamber goggles for refractive surgery-related DED. METHODS: In this nonrandomized open-label controlled study, 78 participants (156 eyes) receiving refractive surgery were enrolled between July 2021 and April 2022, and sequentially allocated to MGC and control groups. 39 participants were allocated to the MGC groups, of which 53.8% received small-incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) and 46.2% received femtosecond laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (FS-LASIK), and were instructed to wear MCGs for the duration of 1 month postoperatively, in addition to the standard postoperative treatment received by the control groups (56.4% SMILE, 43.6% FS-LASIK). Participants underwent full ophthalmic examinations, including visual acuity, manifest refraction, DED evaluations, and higher-order aberrations (HOAs), both preoperatively and at routine follow-ups 1 day, 1 week, and 1 month after surgery. DED parameters included non-invasive tear film break-up time (NIBUT), tear meniscus height (TMH), conjunctival congestion, lipid layer thickness (LLT), and ocular surface disease index (OSDI) questionnaires. Student's t-test was used for comparisons between control and MCG groups, and between preoperative and postoperative parameters within groups. RESULTS: Postoperative NIBUT decreased in both SMILE and FS-LASIK control groups 1 day after the surgery (SMILE, P = 0.001; FS-LASIK, P = 0.008), but not in the corresponding MCG groups (SMILE, P = 0.097; FS-LASIK, P = 0.331). TMH in the MCG group was significantly higher at 1 week (P = 0.039) and 1 month (P = 0.015) in SMILE, and 1 day (P = 0.003) in FS-LASIK groups. In FS-LASIK participants, significantly lower HOAs and coma levels in the MCG group were observed 1 day (total HOAs, P = 0.023; coma, P = 0.004) and 1 week (total HOAs, P = 0.010, coma, P = 0.004) after surgery. No consistent statistically significant intergroup difference was observed between MCG and control groups in conjunctival congestion, LLT, and OSDI. CONCLUSIONS: MCGs effectively slowed tear evaporation, increased tear film stability, and improved HOAs in patients receiving SMILE and FS-LASIK surgeries. MCG is an effective adjuvant therapy in the comprehensive management of refractive surgery-related DED.

Full field-of-view virtual reality goggles for mice.

Visual virtual reality (VR) systems for head-fixed mice offer advantages over real-world studies for investigating the neural circuitry underlying behavior. However, current VR approaches do not fully cover the visual field of view of mice, do not stereoscopically illuminate the binocular zone, and leave the lab frame visible. To overcome these limitations, we developed iMRSIV (Miniature Rodent Stereo Illumination VR)-VR goggles for mice. Our system is compact, separately illuminates each eye for stereo vision, and provides each eye with an ∼180° field of view, thus excluding the lab frame while accommodating saccades. Mice using iMRSIV while navigating engaged in virtual behaviors more quickly than in a current monitor-based system and displayed freezing and fleeing reactions to overhead looming stimulation. Using iMRSIV with two-photon functional imaging, we found large populations of hippocampal place cells during virtual navigation, global remapping during environment changes, and unique responses of place cell ensembles to overhead looming stimulation.

Facial Fracture Injury Criteria from Night Vision Goggle Impact.

INTRODUCTION: Military personnel extensively use night vision goggles (NVGs) in contemporary scenarios. Since NVGs may induce or increase injuries from falls or vehicular accidents, biomechanical risk assessments would aid design goal or mitigation strategy development.METHODS: This study assesses injury risks from NVG impact on cadaver heads using impactors modeled on the PVS-14 NVG. Impacts to the zygoma and maxilla were performed at 20° or 40° angles. Risks of facial fracture, neurotrauma, and neck injury were assessed. Acoustic sensors and accelerometers assessed time of fracture and provided input variables for injury risk functions. Injuries were assessed using the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS); injury severity was assessed using the Rhee and Donat scales. Risk functions were developed for the input variables using censored survival analyses.RESULTS: The effects of impact angle and bone geometry on injury characteristics were determined with loading area, axial force, energy attenuation, and stress at fracture. Probabilities of facial fracture were quantified through survival analysis and injury risk functions. These risk functions determined a 50% risk of facial bone fracture at 1148 N (axial force) at a 20° maxillary impact, 588 N at a 40° maxillary impact, and 677 N at a 20° zygomatic impact. A cumulative distribution function indicates 769 N corresponds to 50% risk of fracture overall.DISCUSSION: Results found smaller impact areas on the maxilla are correlated with higher angles of impact increasing risk of facial fracture, neck injuries are unlikely to occur before fracture or neurotrauma, and a potential trade-off mechanism between fracture and brain injury.Davis MB, Pang DY, Herring IP, Bass CR. Facial fracture injury criteria from night vision goggle impact. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2023; 94(11):827-834.

Eye-mounting goggles to bridge the gap between benchtop experiments and in vivo robotic eye surgery.

A variety of robot-assisted surgical systems have been proposed to improve the precision of eye surgery. Evaluation of these systems has typically relied on benchtop experiments with artificial or enucleated eyes. However, this does not properly account for the types of head motion that are common among patients undergoing eye surgery, which a clinical robotic system will encounter. In vivo experiments are clinically realistic, but they are risky and thus require the robotic system to be at a sufficiently mature state of development. In this paper, we describe a low-cost device that enables an artificial or enucleated eye to be mounted to standard swim goggles worn by a human volunteer to enable more realistic evaluation of eye-surgery robots after benchtop studies and prior to in vivo studies. The mounted eye can rotate about its center, with a rotational stiffness matching that of an anesthetized patient's eye. We describe surgeon feedback and technical analyses to verify that various aspects of the design are sufficient for simulating a patient's eye during surgery.

Assessment of the Blue Light Ocular Hazard by Solar Measurements and the Impact of Selected Sunglasses Based upon the Limits of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection Guideline.

ABSTRACT: A quantitative assessment of the blue light hazard for the human eye related to direct solar irradiation is presented. For six radiation situations, missing eye protection was compared to protection by nine different commercial sunglasses with and without an optimized blue light filter. Measurements of the solar irradiance were performed on Earth's surface as well as at an elevation of 12 km in the cockpit of an airliner. An irradiation time limit was calculated from the measurement data, within which the maximum blue light dose of 100 J m -2 , recommended by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection and mandatory for the safe operation of lamps according to the norm ICE 62471, is reached. The results suggest that the blue light dose limit is violated within less than 3 s when looking without eye protection directly into the sun. For Category 3 sunglasses without the optimized blue light filter, time limits of 10 to 25 s on Earth's surface and 7 to 8 s at 12 km altitude were observed. The investigated Category 3 sunglasses with optimized blue light protection and suited for traffic use allow a time limit of more than 40 s on Earth's surface and 18 to 95 s in the airliner's cockpit. The outcome of the study is that the eye protection against blue light hazard related to solar radiation can be quantified using existing limits and that the choice of sunglasses is relevant: Traffic-worthy sunglasses optimized for protection against blue light hazard offer a better protection than non-optimized sunglasses.

A Facile Strategy to Construct Anti-Swelling, Antibacterial, and Antifogging Coatings for Protection of Medical Goggles.

During the COVID-19 (Corona Virus Disease 2019) pandemic, traditional medical goggles are not only easy to attach bacteria and viruses in long-term exposure, but easy to fogged up, which increases the risk of infection and affects productivity. Bacterial adhesion and fog can be significantly inhibited through the hydrogel coatings, owing to super hydrophilic properties. On the one hand, hydrogel coatings are easy to absorb water and swell in wet environment, resulting in reduced mechanical properties, even peeling off. On the other hand, the hydrogel coatings don't have intrinsic antibacterial properties, which still poses a potential risk of bacterial transmission. Herein, an anti-swelling and antibacterial hydrogel coating is synthesized by 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), acrylamide (AM), dimethylaminoethyl acrylate bromoethane (IL-Br), and poly(sodium-p-styrenesulfonate) (PSS). Due to the self-driven entropy reduction effect of polycation and polyanion, an ion cross-linking network is formed, which endows the hydrogel coating with excellent antiswelling performance. Moreover, because of the synergistic effect of highly hydrated surfaces and the active bactericidal effect from quaternary ammonium cations, the hydrogel coating exhibits outstanding antifouling performances. This work develops a facile strategy to fabricate anti-swelling, antifouling, and antifogging hydrogel coatings for the protection of medical goggles, and also for biomedical and marine antifouling fields.

Evaluation of operator eye exposure and eye protective devices in interventional radiology: Results on clinical staff and phantom.

PURPOSE: To assess occupational eye lens dose based on clinical monitoring of interventional radiologists and to assess personal protective eyewear (PPE) efficacy through measurements with anthropomorphic phantom. METHODS: Two positions of the operator with respect to X-ray beam were simulated with phantom. Dose reduction factor (DRF) of four PPE was assessed, as well as correlation between eye lens and whole-body doses. Brain dose was also assessed. Five radiologists were monitored for one-year clinical procedures. All subjects were equipped with whole-body dosimeter placed over lead apron at the chest level and eye lens dosimeter placed over the left side of the PPE. Kerma-Area Product (KAP) of procedures performed during the monitoring period was recorded. The correlation of eye lens dose with whole-body dose and KAP was assessed. RESULTS: DRF was 4.3/2.4 for wraparound glasses, 4.8/1.9 for fitover glasses, 9.1/6.8 for full-face visor in radial/femoral geometries. DRF of half-face visor depended on how it is worn (range 1.0-4.9). Statistically significant correlation between dose value over the PPE and chest dose was observed, while there was no correlation between eye lens dose and chest dose. The results on clinical staff showed statistically significant correlation between dose values over the PPE and KAP. CONCLUSIONS: All PPE showed significant DRF in all configurations, provided they were worn correctly. Single DRF value is not applicable to all clinical situations. KAP is a valuable tool for determining appropriate radiation protection measures.

Beer Goggles or Liquid Courage? Alcohol, Attractiveness Perceptions, and Partner Selection Among Men.

OBJECTIVE: Perception of physical attractiveness (PPA) is a fundamental aspect of human relationships and may help explain alcohol's rewarding and harmful effects. Yet PPA is rarely studied in relation to alcohol, and existing approaches often rely on simple attractiveness ratings. The present study added an element of realism to the attractiveness assessment by asking participants to select four images of people they were led to believe might be paired with them in a subsequent study. METHOD: Dyads of platonic, same-sex male friends (n = 36; ages 21-27; predominantly White, n = 20) attended two laboratory sessions wherein they consumed alcohol and a no-alcohol control beverage (counterbalanced). Following beverage onset, participants rated PPA of targets using a Likert scale. They also selected four individuals from the PPA rating set to potentially interact with in a future study. RESULTS: Alcohol did not affect traditional PPA ratings but did significantly enhance the likelihood that participants would choose to interact with the most attractive targets, χ2(1, N = 36) = 10.70, p < .01. CONCLUSIONS: Although alcohol did not affect traditional PPA ratings, alcohol did increase the likelihood of choosing to interact with more attractive others. Future alcohol-PPA studies should include more realistic contexts and provide assessment of actual approach behaviors toward attractive targets, to further clarify the role of PPA in alcohol's hazardous and socially rewarding effects.

Coronavirus disease 2019: Repeated immersion of chlorine-containing disinfectants has adverse effects on goggles.

Introduction: During COVID-19, some front-line personnel experienced varying degrees of eye discomfort due to the use of goggles repeatedly disinfected with chlorine-containing disinfectant. Methods: The eye damage information of 276 front-line personnel who used goggles in a hospital from October 1, 2021, to December 1, 2021, was collected by filling out a questionnaire. To study the effect of chlorinated disinfectants on goggles, we immersed the goggles in the same volume of water and chlorinated disinfectant buckets. We tested the light transmittance, color and texture, and airtightness of the goggles at different times (1, 3, 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, 72, 96, 120, 144, 168, 192, 216, 240, and 268 h). In addition, we detected where chlorinated disinfectant remained in the goggles by using disinfectant concentration test paper. Results: 60 (21.82%) people experienced dry eyes, stinging pain, photophobia and tearing, conjunctival congestion, eyelid redness, and swelling. After treatment or rest, the patient's ocular symptoms were significantly relieved within 3 days. With the extension of disinfection time, the light transmission of the lenses gradually decreased, and the light transmission reduced when immersion occurred at 216 h. After 72 h of disinfection, the color of the goggle frame began to change to light yellow, the texture gradually became hard and brittle, and the color became significantly darker at 268 h of disinfection. The airtightness of the goggles began to decrease after 168 h of disinfection, the airtightness decreased substantially at 268 h, and the shape changed significantly. In addition, the concentration test paper results show that the disinfection solution mainly resides in the goggle frame seam and goggles' elastic bands' bundle. Conclusions: Repeated chlorine disinfectant disinfection will reduce the effectiveness of goggles protection and damage front-line personnel's eye health.

"Simulation of medical goggles to stop airborne transmission of viruses: computational fluid dynamics in ergonomics".

This paper presents a position statement on combining computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and ergonomics to guide the design of personal protective equipment (PPE). We used CFD to simulate 36 exposure scenarios of an infected patient sneezing at different distances and different angles while facing either the front or the side of a healthcare worker with or without goggles. The results show that medical goggles indeed block most droplets from the outer surface, but many droplets still deposit on the bottom edge (especially at the nose), inside the air holes and on the side edge. However, the edges of medical goggles have fitment problems with people in different regions, and the air holes do not function as filters and cannot prevent fine droplets from entering the interior and contacting the eyes. Our research demonstrates the feasibility of studying the design of PPE for airtightness and protection by means of CFD.Practitioner summary: Computational fluid dynamics can quickly and efficiently reflect the airtightness design problems of PPE. A model was developed using CFD to examine the protective effect of medical goggles in preventing the airborne transmission of viruses. The model demonstrates the feasibility of using CFD to solve ergonomic problems.Abbreviations: CFD: computational fluid dynamics; PPE: personal protective equipment; WHO: the World Health Organisation; COVID-19: coronavirus disease 2019; SARS-CoV-2: severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; OSHA: the Occupational Safety and Health Administration; CDC: the Centres for Disease Control; FEM: finite element method; 3M: Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Corporation; SPH: smoothed particle hydrodynamics; AROM: active range of motion; DPM: discrete phase model; PISO: pressure implicit with splitting of operators; VR: virtual reality; AR: augmented reality.