Previously submitted to: JMIR Formative Research (no longer under consideration since Feb 05, 2025)
Date Submitted: Oct 23, 2024
Open Peer Review Period: Oct 25, 2024 - Dec 20, 2024
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
Prevalence and Influencing Factors of Myopia and Axial Length in Children and Adolescents Aged 4 to 18 Years in Northern China
ABSTRACT
Background:
Childhood myopia has become an increasingly serious public health problem worldwide.
Objective:
This study aims to explore the prevalence of myopia, axial length changes, and their influencing factors among children and adolescents aged 4 to 18 years in Beijing. The findings are expected to provide a scientific basis for taking effective measures to prevent and control myopia for government decision-making.
Methods:
This cross-sectional survey involved 2595 children from 9 randomly selected educational institutions (1 kindergarten and 8 schools) in northern China. The survey included a questionnaire, visual acuity examination, refractive screening, and axial length measurement.
Results:
The prevalence of myopia among the tested students was 56.53%, and 50.98% of students had an axial length (AL) of >23.5 mm. The AL is elongated with age, and the right was longer than the left (P<0.05). Excluding preschool children, the AL was significantly different between students with and without myopia (P<0.05). The univariate analysis showed significant differences in the myopia rates by age, reading distance, close learning time, lighting environment, and myopia in parents (P<0.05). The multivariate logistic analysis showed that older children and myopia in parents were risk factors for myopia and a longer AL, with girls being more likely to develop myopia than boys (odds ratio, 1.35; 95% confidence interval, 1.133–1.597).
Conclusions:
The prevalence of myopia and the proportion of excessive increase of AL were high in children and adolescents aged 4 to 18 years. Therefore, it is possible to predict the occurrence and development of myopia in children by measuring the AL and to prevent and control myopia in children and adolescents by reducing the short-distance reading time and maintaining an adequate reading distance.
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