Abstract
BackgroundThe prevalence of myopia among children in Chengdu is unknown. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of myopia in 3- to 14-year-old Chinese children in Chengdu.MethodsThis study was a school-based cross-sectional study in children aged 3–14 years. Visual acuity (VA), spherical equivalent error (SER) with noncycloplegic autorefraction, axial length (AL) and corneal radius (CR) were measured.ResultsA total of 19,455 children were recruited for this study. The prevalence of myopia was 38.1 %; the prevalence of low myopia was 26.6 %, that of moderate myopia was 9.8 %, and that of high myopia was 1.7 %. The prevalence of myopia and SER increased with age from 6 years old. The prevalence of myopia was higher, and the SER indicated more severe myopia in the girls than in the boys (40.1 % vs. 36.2 %, χ2 = 30.67, df = 1, P < 0.001; -0.93 D ± 1.75 D vs. -0.84 D ± 1.74 D, t = 3.613, df=19,453, P < 0.001). The girls had a higher prevalence of myopia and myopic SER than did the boys aged 9 years and older (P < 0.05). Among the myopic children, the rates of uncorrected, undercorrected and fully corrected myopia were 54.8 %, 31.1 and 14.1 %, respectively. AL and AL/CR increased with age from 6 years old, but CR remained stable after 4 years old. The AL was longer, and the CR was flatter in the boys than in the girls aged 3 to 14 years old (P < 0.05).ConclusionsThe prevalence of myopia, AL and AL/CR increased, and the SER became more myopic with age from 6 years old. The girls had a higher prevalence of myopia and myopic SER than did the boys, but the boys had a longer AL, flatter CR and higher AL/CR ratio than did the girls. The rate of uncorrected myopia was very high in the myopic children. More actions need to be taken to decrease the prevalence of myopia, especially uncorrected myopia in children.
Highlights
IntroductionThe aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of myopia in 3- to 14-year-old Chinese children in Chengdu
The prevalence of myopia among children in Chengdu is unknown
The total prevalence of myopia remained stable between ages 3 and 5 years (3 vs. 4 years P = 0.88, 3 vs. 5 years P = 0.968, 4 vs. 5 years P = 0.831) but increased from ages 6 to 13 years
Summary
The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of myopia in 3- to 14-year-old Chinese children in Chengdu. Myopia is characterized by a high incidence, early onset and rapid progression in East Asia. The rapid development of myopia needs to be considered because it leads to inconvenience in daily life and causes ocular diseases, such as macular disease, retinal detachment, and glaucoma. These conditions cause very large social and economic burdens [7, 8]. There are a few studies on the prevalence of myopia in children aged 3 years and older. Because the age at which children begin school varies, it is better to determine stratify the prevalence of myopia by age in children
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