Ophthalmologists may restore your sight, but in the process they end up harming themselves. A recent study has found that awkward posture and prolonged working hours are taking a serious toll on their health.
According to the study published in a recent edition of Journal of Indian Ophthalmologists, the rate of reported neck and back pain from mild to unbearable among Indian eye care doctors was 70 per cent.
A self reporting questionnaire was sent to around 10,000 ophthalmologists registered with the Indian Ophthalmologists Association. This is the first of its kind cross sectional study on the neck and back pain in this occupational group from the country.
Though, just 651 ie 5.96 per cent responded, the authors of the study said that the data was sufficient to assess the prevalence of the back pain in the community.
Around 398 (61 per cent) respondents felt that their back pain was exacerbated while doing work and 86.6 per cent felt that up to 5 hour per week was lost due to persistent backache. To alleviate the pain, most of them ie 74.3 per cent resorted to yoga and some form of exercise.
In addition, minimal modifications in the instrumentation like adjustments in the height of the slit lamp, operating table and/or microscope eyepieces to maintain the neck and back in a neutral position to avoid unnecessary extension or flexion is necessary to bring down the prevalence of back pain and decrease the rate of absenteeism due to it.
“Raising the doctor to patient ratio and reducing the workload on ophthalmologists are equally important to prevent eye care providers from developing back pain,” said the study authored by Dr Ramesh Venkatesh and Dr Sumit Kumar from Department of Retina and Vitreous, Dr Shroff's Charity Eye Hospital.
Concerned at the growing musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) among physicians, Dr Sundaram Natarajan and Dr Akshay Gopinathan Nair from Mumbai-based Aditya Jyot Eye Hospital suggested resorting to yoga and regular exercises, modifications in instrumentation and creating a larger workforce of eye care practitioners as a way to prevent developing back pain. Just as patient comfort is important, the examining doctor's comfort is equally vital, they said.
The situation is no different in other countries. Among 130 American ophthalmic plastic surgeons responding to a 2010 survey, 72.5 percent reported pain associated with operating; nine surgeons reported having to give up operating as a result
“”After years of doing surgery they've become a mess, and they probably never saw it coming. That's one of the physical risks of being an ophthalmologist. After hours of surgery week after week, we're just as subject to bodily injury as any athlete.” said an article quoting Robert M Kershner, Professor of anatomy, physiology and microbiology at Palm Beach State College and CEO of Eye laser Consulting in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla