Quantitative videographic analysis of blink patterns of newscasters.
BACKGROUND
To determine the blink patterns of newscasters.


METHODS
The blink patterns of 39 professional newscasters (24 Japanese and 19 non-Japanese, 19 men and 20 women, mean age: 34.5 +/- 6.5 years) were analyzed by a blink analyzer in this observational case series. Sixty-four normal Japanese volunteers (35 men and 29 women, mean age: 31.2 +/- 7.6 years) were used as lay normal controls.


RESULTS
The maximum, mean, and coefficient of variation (CV) of interblinking time (IBT: the time between one blink and the next) in newscasters were 2.36 +/- 0.90 s (P < 0.0005), 0.95 +/- 0.27 s (P < 0.0005), and 0.76 +/- 0.25 (P < 0.0005), respectively, while those of the controls were 8.87 +/- 3.96 s, 4.01 +/- 2.05 s, and 0.55 +/- 0.21, respectively. The maximum, mean, and CV of the blinking time (BT: the length of time for each blink) of newscasters were 0.71 +/- 0.43 s (P < 0.0005), 0.29 +/- 0.11 s (P < 0.0005), and 0.55 +/- 0.25 (P < 0.0005), respectively. The values were longer when compared with normal controls, which were also significantly different, 0.35 +/- 0.12 s, 0.20 +/- 0.04 s and 0.23 +/- 0.09, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
The six blink-related factors varied between newscasters and normal controls. Newscasters blink more often with greater irregularity.
Mori
Asako
A
Department of Ophthalmology, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan.
Egami
Fuminobu
F
Nakamori
Katsu
K
Ohtsuki
Tomohiro
T
Aikawa
Katsuyoshi
K
Shintani
Masuro
M
Matsumoto
Yukihiro
Y
Goto
Eiki
E
Tsubota
Kazuo
K
D000328:Adult; D001767:Blinking / Q000502:physiology*; D003142:Communication; D005143:Eyelids / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013690:Television; D013997:Time Factors; D014741:Video Recording