Abstract
Background:Refractive error is a common and serious eye disorder that affects more than 153 million people globally. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence and pattern of refractive error among male primary school children in Jazan region, Saudi Arabia.Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted among a randomly selected group of 395 students (aged 6-14 years) in Jazan region, Southwest Saudi Arabia. An optometrist and medical students assessed the refraction error using an autorefractor, a Snellen E chart and retinoscopy.Results:The overall prevalence of uncorrected refractive error in either eye was, 22% higher among rural students. The most prevalent refractive error was hyperopia (32.2%) followed by myopic astigmatism (31%) then myopia (17.2%). Next were hyperopic astigmatism (16.1%) and mixed astigmatism (3.5%). The following variables were associated with a higher risk of refractive errors and myopia: living in rural areas, having parents with refractive errors, spending more time on electronic devices and shorter visual distances.Conclusion:Refractive error was highly prevalent among primary school children in Jazan, Saudi Arabia. The rural students were more affected by refractive errors, mainly hyperopia. The preschool vision test should be reconsidered, and a periodic vision examination should be applied to detect vision problems as early as possible.
Highlights
The WHO has estimated that about 153 million people over the age of five years are visually impaired as a result of uncorrected Refractive Error (RE) [1]
The percentage of affected students in rural areas was 24.6% compared to 15.5% in urban areas; a significant difference existed between them (p-value = 0.047)
We found that refractive errors affected both eyes at a percentage of 89%, while they affected the right eye alone at a rate of 7% and the left eye alone at a rate of 4% (Table 2)
Summary
The WHO has estimated that about 153 million people over the age of five years are visually impaired as a result of uncorrected Refractive Error (RE) [1]. Around 12.8 million children (aged 5 to 15 years) are visually impaired, with a global prevalence of 1%, due to uncorrected or inadequately corrected refractive errors [1]. Refractive Error among Primary School Students, Saudi Arabia. In Saudi Arabia, many studies have been conducted to estimate the prevalence and pattern of refractive error among primary school children. Refractive error is a common and serious eye disorder that affects more than 153 million people globally. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence and pattern of refractive error among male primary school children in Jazan region, Saudi Arabia
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