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1From the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Eye Hospital, Kowloon, Hong Kong, Peoples Republic of China; 2Center of Clinical Trials and Epidemiological Research, The Chinese University of Hong Kong; and the 3Singapore Eye Research Institute, Singapore.
| Abstract |
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METHODS. A cross-sectional survey was initially conducted. A longitudinal follow-up study was then conducted 12 months later.
RESULTS. A total of 7560 children of mean age 9.33 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 9.119.45; range, 516) participated in the study. Mean spherical equivalent refraction (SER) was -0.33 D (SD = 11.56; range, -13.13 to +14.25 D). Myopia (SER
-0.50 D) was the most common refractive error and was found in 36.71% ± 2.87% (SD) of children. Prevalence of myopia correlated positively with older age. Children aged 11 years were almost 15 times more likely to have myopia than were children younger than 7 years (Odds ratio [OR] = 14.81; 95% CI = 14.1715.48). Incidence of myopia was 144.1 ± 2.31 (SD) per 1000 primary school children per annum. Increasing age was correlated with increased incidence of myopia, with highest risk in children ages 11 years (OR = 2.27; 95% CI = 2.112.44). The average annual change in SER for children with myopia (SER
-0.50 D) was -0.63 D (SD = 3.44) compared with -0.29 D (SD = 2.96) for those who were not myopic at the beginning of the study (P < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS. The results show that the prevalence and progression of myopia in Hong Kong children was much higher than those previously reported in Western countries. The long-term socioeconomic impact of these findings warrants further studies.
Prevalence of myopia varies in different parts of the world. The Baltimore Eye Survey8 and Beaver Dam Study9 reported the prevalence in adults to be 22.7% and 26.2%, respectively. These rates seem low compared with recent data from East Asia. Japan10 reported an overall prevalence of 50%. In the younger population, Taiwan11 reported a prevalence of 84% in people by 16 years of age. Though there have been reports on prevalence of myopia, there is no population-based longitudinal study on the incidence of myopia and its progression among school children in Asia. In addition, reasons for myopias being epidemic in East Asia but not in North America or Europe remain unclear. As myopia has an onset and progresses in childhood, it is important to focus research on these age groups. To date, no large-scale studies have been performed to address the prevalence, incidence, and severity of myopia in children of Hong Kong. However, we know Hong Kong children share most of the common features among other East Asian countriesnamely, ethic Chinese living in highly congested environments with competitive lifestyles and heavy schoolwork. We sought to examine these important epidemiologic parameters and compare them with the published data. Prevention and healthcare planning for our next generation will be much facilitated when this important information is known. The study also has a component to investigate the risk factors of myopia and its progression, such as parental history of myopia, visual tasks, and astigmatism. We are in the process of finalizing the data analysis of this part of the study in preparation for another report.
| Methods |
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Ophthalmic Examination
All examinations were conducted in the schools during school hours by optometrists from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Examinations included best-corrected distant visual acuity testing, cycloplegic autorefraction, and measurements of ocular dimensions with ultrasound. Distant visual acuity of each eye was measured using the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Survey (EDTRS) chart at 6 m with standard lighting. Cycloplegia was achieved using 1 drop of combined 0.5% phenylephrine and 0.5% tropicamide eye drops (Mydrin P; Santen, Osaka, Japan) instilled three times in the inferior conjunctival cul-de-sac, at intervals of 15 minutes. Automated refraction was performed with an autorefractometer (Topcon KR-7100 autorefractometer; Topcon Corp., Tokyo, Japan) between 30 and 60 minutes after completion of the drug regimen. Three reliable readings were obtained in each eye, and the average of these values was used for analysis. Ultrasound biomicroscopy (Compuscan; Storz Ophthalmic Inc., St. Louis, MO) was performed after cycloplegia. The ocular parameters measured included anterior chamber depth, lens thickness, vitreous chamber depth, and axial length. Three reliable readings were obtained, and the average of these values was used for analysis. All the equipment was maintained in satisfactory working condition, and reliable performance was assured by routine quality control programs.
Cohort Study
All schools were revisited 12 months after the initial examination, and all children who had participated in the study were reinvited. Children originally in the most senior class were excluded from this part of the study because most of them would have been attending a different secondary school. Identical ophthalmic examinations under the same settings by the same personnel as the initial part of the study were repeated to determine the incidence and progression of myopia among these children.
Definitions and Data Analysis
Spherical equivalent refraction (SER) was calculated as the numerical sum of the sphere and half of the cylinder. The negative cylinder method was used. Myopia was defined as SER of -0.50 D or less. Mild, moderate, and severe myopia was defined as -0.50 to -2.99 D, -3.00 to -5.99 D, and -6.00 D or more, respectively. Hypermetropia was defined as SER of +2.00 D or more. Astigmatism was defined as cylinder of -1.00 D or less. Anisometropia was defined as difference of SER of 1.00 D or more between the two eyes. The examination was repeated in 50 randomly selected study subjects after 2 weeks to assess the reliability of the ophthalmic examination tests. The intraclass correlation coefficient of the right eye SER and axial length were 0.85 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.700.93) and 0.78 (95% CI = 0.580.89), respectively.
The adjusted prevalence and incidence of myopia was weighted by the number of students in different school districts and school grades. The study population was selected randomly from a census provided by the Educational Department of Hong Kong, which recorded a total of 476,682 and 491,851 primary school children in the year 1998 and 1999, respectively. Two-sample t-tests were performed, and general linear models and logistic regression models were fitted with age and sex as covariates (SAS, ver. 8.01, SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC).
| Results |
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A high correlation between SER of the right and left eyes was found (
= 0.935) and the refractive status of the right eye was chosen for analysis. The mean refractive error in the right eye of these children was -0.33 D (SD = 11.56; range, -13.13 to +14.25 D). The prevalence of emmetropia, hypermetropia, and myopia are shown in Table 1 . Myopia was the most common type of refractive error. It was found in 36.71% ± 2.87% (SD) of the children. The average refractive error of these myopic eyes was -2.33 D (SD = 9.62 D). Mild myopia (-0.50 to -2.99 D) was found in 26.27% of children, moderate myopia (-3.00 to -5.99 D) in 9.47%, and severe myopia (
-6.00 D) in 1.19%. Astigmatism was the second most common refractive error, present in 18.1% ± 0.4% (range, -1.00 to -5.75 D) of the study subjects. The frequency of anisometropia was 9.2% ± 0.3% (range, 1.009.25 D).
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Of the 3149 children who were not myopic at the initial examination, 454 were myopic in the second examination. The incidence of myopia was therefore 144.1 ± 2.31 per 1000 primary school children per annum. Incidences of individual gender and age groups are shown in Figure 1 . Highest incidences were found in 10-year-old boys and 11-year-old girls, with annual incidence of 199.5 and 275.6 per 1000, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that boys had a lower incidence of myopia than girls (OR = 0.86; 95% CI = 0.830.88). Increasing age was positively correlated with increased incidence of myopia, with highest risks in children aged 10 and 11 (OR = 1.93 and 2.27, respectively; Table 3 ).
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-0.50 D) was -0.63 D (SD = 3.44 D) compared with -0.29 D (SD = 2.96 D) for those who were not myopic at the beginning of study. This difference was statistically significant (P < 0.001). A higher degree of myopia at the beginning of the study was directly related to higher myopic progression (all P < 0.001, Table 4 ).
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| Discussion |
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Our results showed that Hong Kong has one of the highest prevalences of myopia in the world (Table 5) . Taking into account of the differences in myopic definition, study, and measurement methodology and age group compositions, Hong Kong still had a high percentage of myopic children. Our prevalence was three times that of the United States,12 more than 10 times that reported from the Middle East, and nearly twice that in South America.13 14 Our results, however, were comparable to our East Asian neighbors, such as Taiwan and Singapore where Chinese population predominated.15 16 17
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Our 1-year cohort study found the incidence of myopia to be 144.1 per 1000 primary school children per annum, an increase from a previous study in Hong Kong in which the incidence was 118 per 1000 among children of age 6 to 17. The cohort was much smaller, with 142 school children using noncycloplegic refraction.20 The average change in SER for children who were myopic (SER
-0.50 D) was -0.63 D (SD = 3.44 D) compared with -0.29 D (SD = 2.96 D) for those who were not myopic at the beginning of study (P < 0.001). Similar difference in favor of nonmyopes was previously reported using noncycloplegic subjective refraction (-0.46 D vs. -0.17 D, respectively).20 A Singaporean study21 in children aged 6 to 12 reported the average annual change for children with SER more than -2.00 D and SER -2.00 D or less to be -0.56 and -0.65 D, respectively (P < 0.0001). Caution must be exercised when interpreting results from this latter study, because it recruited children participating in a clinical trial on control of myopia progression, rather than children in the general population.21 Nonetheless, most reports so far support the hypothesis that myopic children have a greater myopic shift than do those without myopia.22 23
Mean rates of childhood myopia progression among white children in the United States24 25 26 and the United Kingdom27 were generally quoted in the range of -0.10 to -0.30 D per year, much lower than rates reported by Asian studies. This may be the result of the complex interaction between genetic and environmental factors unique to Asian children, such as genetic susceptibility, living in a congested environment, and highly competitive education systems. Further studies comparing children of different ethnicities living in identical environment with children of same ethnicity living in different environments would help to explore the observed differences.
Our study also had limitations. First, not all children in Hong Kong were included in the sampling frame. Children studying in international schools and special schools were excluded. Thus, our study results reflect only the prevalence and incidence of myopia in ethnic Chinese children studying at conventional Chinese primary schools in Hong Kong. Second, although we tried to improve the participation rate by conducting all examinations in schools, holding prestudy education seminars, and giving out information sheets to parents, 20% of all invited children still refused to participate. Third, even though the present study was the largest of its kind, our incidence and myopic progression rates were calculated based on only 1 year of follow-up. A longer follow-up would provide better knowledge on how incidence of myopia changes with time, as well as the impact of a rapid growth spurt on the growth of the eyeball and progression of myopia.
In conclusion, Hong Kong has one of the highest prevalences of myopia in the world, and it is likely that both the rate and severity of myopia will increase over time. Similar epidemics are observed in our East Asian neighbors, creating important medical, social, and public health issues. With the availability of these basic epidemiologic parameters, we are now in a better position to explore the risk factors associated with myopia. Some postulations have already been made regarding the etiology of myopianamely, increased near-work activity and intense schooling. More studies on the interaction between genetic and environmental factors are warranted.
| Footnotes |
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Supported by a Health Service Research Grant (HSRC project: Ref 811004).
Submitted for publication October 20, 2003; revised November 27, 2003; accepted December 13, 2003.
Disclosure: D.S.P. Fan, None; D.S.C. Lam, None; R.F. Lam, None; J.T.F. Lau, None; K.S. Chong, None; E.Y.Y. Cheung, None; R.Y.K. Lai, None; S.-J. Chew, None
The publication costs of this article were defrayed in part by page charge payment. This article must therefore be marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C.
1734 solely to indicate this fact.
Corresponding author: Dennis S. C. Lam, Chairman, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, University Eye Center, Hong Kong Eye Hospital, 147K Argyle Street, Kowloon, Hong Kong, Peoples Republic of China; dennislam{at}cuhk.edu.hk.
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