The Effect of Three Eye Care Methods on the Severity of Lagophthalmos in Intensive Care Patients: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

BACKGROUND: Patients admitted to intensive care units are exposed to a variety of eye injuries such as lagophthalmos, which can lead to blindness. There is conflicting evidence regarding the effectiveness of different eye protection methods, and evaluations are ongoing. Therefore, this study was performed to compare the effect of “polyethylene cover,” “polyethylene cover plus artificial tear drops,” and “polyethylene cover plus Lubratex eye ointment” on the severity of lagophthalmos. METHODS: A total of 156 patients connected to ventilators were included in this clinical trial using the convenience sampling method. They were randomly divided into three groups: “polyethylene cover,” polyethylene cover plus artificial tear drops,” and “polyethylene cover plus Lubratex eye ointment.” In each group, one eye was regarded as control and the other eye as intervention. The control eye received routine interventions, including washing with normal saline. The eyes were examined daily by an ophthalmologist for 5 days for the occurrence of lagophthalmos. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in the severity of lagophthalmos among the three groups “polyethylene cover,” “polyethylene cover plus artificial tear drop,” and “polyethylene cover plus Lubratex eye ointment.” However, clinically the severity of lagophthalmos was lower in the “polyethylene cover plus artificial tear drops” group than in the other two groups. CONCLUSION: The results showed that the combination of polyethylene cover and artificial tears drops can be clinically effective in reducing the severity of lagophthalmos. Therefore, the use of this method is recommended for patients admitted to the intensive care unit. Similar studies are recommended.