Research Topic
The selected research problem is the frequent cases of eye diseases and infections in patients with COVID-19, which is insufficiently addressed from the practical perspective. Meanwhile, scholars claim that it is critical for the population’s health and symptoms corresponding to the above conditions, such as conjunctival congestion, conjunctival secretion, ocular pain, photophobia, dry eye, and tearing, seem alarming (Chen et al., 2020). Since they belong to the principal signs of the coronavirus infection, it is critical to develop measures to protect adults and children from possible complications with their vision (Lawrenson & Buckley, 2020). In addition, the epidemiologic importance of similar findings of other scholars is explained by the fact that the presence of conjunctivitis in the sickest patients might have long-term consequences (Sommer, 2020). Therefore, the wellbeing of affected persons is partially conditional upon the proposed solution.
Moreover, the situation seems severe not only for citizens with COVID-19 but also for healthcare specialists. According to recent research, ophthalmic professionals are reported to be the most vulnerable group with regard to “contracting the virus by virtue of their job” (Sadhu et al., 2020). More specifically, these results relate to contact lens (CL) practitioners and their patients. The study on their risks showed that they are higher than in other categories of people since CL wearing is connected to thorough hand washing and drying (Jones et al., 2020). The failure to do so for them will lead to more serious problems than in others, and it means that future research should address individuals with respect to their practice of eye care.
Research Goals
The comprehensive information presented above clearly indicates the higher risks for people infected with COVID-19 concerning their eye health in contrast to their counterparts who are not affected by the coronavirus. This provision allows formulating two goals for the proposed study. First, it is vital to examine the consequences of COVID-19 for people’s conditions related to eye diseases and similar issues. Second, it is necessary to develop a number of measures for both health practitioners and their patients to ensure full recovery and eliminate the risks of permanent damage. Therefore, the research on the topic will identify complications among citizens with COVID-19 and make suggestions on how to avoid them.
Research Questions
As follows from the above objectives of the future study, the research questions corresponding to them encompass the current issues of people with both COVID-19 and eye infections and preventive methods. In this case, they will be: What eye diseases are more frequent in patients with COVID-19? Is there a difference between the issues of healthcare practitioners and other people? Which methods will be more beneficial for eliminating the accompanying risks for different categories of participants? Thus, the answers to them will be sufficient for designing a policy to implement in real-life situations within medical facilities.
Study Design
The proposed study design for examining the impact of eye diseases alongside COVID-19 on the quality of people’s lives will be a case-control study. In this situation, two different groups, healthcare practitioners and their patients, will be observed with respect to their eye problems and outcomes for further comparison. It will allow distinguishing the risks attributed to the groups and develop methods for the prevention of complications. In turn, the research methods for the study will be calculating incidence over the past two months and prevalence in participants from the specified categories.
References
Chen, L., Deng, C., Chen, X., Zhang, X., Chen, B., Yu, H., Qin, Y., Xiao, K., Zhang, H., & Sun, X. (2020). Ocular manifestations and clinical characteristics of 535 cases of COVID‐19 in Wuhan, China: A cross‐sectional study. Acta Ophthalmologica, 98(8), e951-e959. Web.
Jones, L., Walsh, K., Willcox, M., Morgan, P., & Nichols, J. (2020). The COVID-19 pandemic: Important considerations for contact lens practitioners. Contact Lens and Anterior Eye, 43(3), 196-203. Web.
Lawrenson, J. G., & Buckley, R. J. (2020). COVID‐19 and the eye. Ophthalmic & Physiological Optics. Web.
Sadhu, S., Agrawal, R., Pyare, R., Pavesio, C., Zierhut, M., Khatri, A., Smith, J. R., de Smet, M. D., & Biswas, J. (2020). COVID-19: Limiting the risks for eye care professionals. Ocular Immunology and Inflammation, 28(5), 714-720. Web.
Sommer, A. (2020). Humans, viruses, and the eye – An early report from the COVID-19 front line. JAMA Ophthalmology, 138(5), 578-579. Web.