Desiccating stress is not a new term, but it is a highly underused one. It describes things that cause stress upon the ocular surface. The environmental things that bring about desiccation are abundant: air conditioning, heating units, ceiling fans, being dehydrated, dry environments, and more.
One place where desiccating stress reveals itself in abundance is on an airplane. We have all experienced the dryness that we encounter while flying. Contact lens patients experience this in a profound way. During lens wear, our patients are already at a disadvantage because their tears are not the same while they wear their lenses. Add to that the dehydration, recycled air, and dry environment that usually goes with air travel, and it can be a recipe for disaster.
Here are five tips to help your contact lens-wearing patients have more comfortable eyes on an airplane:
1) Wear your glasses. The less time wearing contact lenses on the plane will make their lens-wearing experience on the ground far better.
2) Hydrate. Either bring a water bottle and fill it up past security or buy water. And, when the flight attendants come by offering water, always say yes.
3) Select an aisle seat. This is important for obvious reasons related to #2.
4) Wear layers and turn the air flow off above your seat. While the air can give a nice cool breeze during the flight, it is nasty for your eyes.
5) Hydrate your eyes before, during, and after your flight. No explanation necessary.
Anything that we can do to reduce desiccating stress for our patients while they are traveling will work to make their trip more enjoyable and more comfortable on their eyes.
READ MORE: https://www.clspectrum.com/newsletters/contact-lenses-today/july-19,-2020
