Technology has definitely made our lives easier and enjoyable. But any kind of an addiction to it may lead to devastating effects on our physical health. A doctor from Hyderabad recently shared a health related post on the internet that may sound frightening but is an eye opener for all of us hooked to our smartphones or any digital device.
In his Twitter thread, Dr Sudhir detailed how a young woman from Hyderabad lost her vision as a result of routine behaviour.
According to the post, Manju, 30, was diagnosed with blindness as she spent long hours on her phone in the dark for around one and a half years. Due to excessively using her phone the woman began to develop disabling vision symptoms that included, seeing floaters, bright flashes of light, dark zig zag lines and at times inability to see or focus on objects.
"There were moments when she could not see anything for several seconds. This occurred mostly at nights when she got up to use washroom. She was evaluated by an #eye specialist and detailed evaluation was found to be normal. She was referred to rule out neurological causes," the Twitter thread read.
The doctor then went on to explain how the woman lost her vision and said she was suffering from a disease called smartphone vision syndrome (SVS)
"The diagnosis was obvious now. She was suffering from smartphone vision syndrome (SVS). Long-term use of devices such as computer, smartphones or tablets can cause various eye-related disabling symptoms, referred to as computer vision syndrome (CVS) or digital vision syndrome," the doctor wrote.
Interestingly, the doctor did not prescribe any medication but advised her to minimize the use of smartphone.
"I did not order any investigations, nor did I prescribe any medicines (even though Manju requested them as she was anxious). I counselled her about the possible cause for her vision impairment and suggested she minimise the use of her smartphone," he said.
Dr Sudhir then said that the woman's "vision impairment of 18 months had gone" after he reviewed her condition in a month.
"At 1-month review, Manju was absolutely fine. Her vision impairment of 18 months had gone. Now, she had normal eyesight, did not see any floaters or flashes of light. Moreover, her momentary loss of vision at nights also stopped. Our suspicion was proved right," wrote the doctor.
Lastly, he had a suggestion for all the users who spend long hours over digital devices.
"Avoid looking at screens of digital devices for long, as it can cause severe and disabling vision-related problems. *Take 20-second break, every 20 min, to look at something 20 feet away, while using a digital screen (20-20-20 rule)," the doctor advised.