Abstract

Eyelid protection from ultraviolet radiation (UVR)injury at the beach during daylight hours is best achievedthrough the combination use of skin barriers includingeyewear, a shade providing hat, and the topicalapplication of a UVR barrier to the eyelids. A survey of 232Galveston beachgoers was performed to evaluatebeachgoer knowledge about eyelid skin cancer andbehaviour to limit eyelid damage from UVR. Study resultsfound that while eyewear was the most frequent type ofUVR eyelid protection used at the beach (69 percent), itdid not provide complete UVR eyelid protection due tophysical gaps between the eyewear and skin, permittingboth frontal and lateral eyelid exposure. Hat use wassignificantly associated with eyewear use (p=0.0002).Sunscreen or makeup use on eyelids was significantly higherfor women (p=0.006) compared to men. Increased publiceducation about the importance of eyelid protection fromUVR injury remains important, especially for men, since theyhave the highest incidence of eyelid cancer.