HomeLifestyleHealth & FitnessNew study links symptoms of Nearsightedness (myopia) in children to pandemic

New study links symptoms of Nearsightedness (myopia) in children to pandemic

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A new study, published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology, reported a rise in cases of nearsightedness (myopia) among children as a result of a significant decrease in outdoor time and a sharp increase in screen time during the coronavirus pandemic.

By September 2020, the researchers estimate, more than 180 countries had closed schools and colleges, affecting one billion students, or 80 percent of the world’s students, in an effort to halt the spread of coronavirus.

Outdoor activities are restricted or banned for children, and socialisation is severely restricted. As a result, most Hong Kong residents live in high-rises and small apartments with limited outdoor space.

A closed working environment and increase in screen time have raised the cases of short-sightedness, a condition in which the shape of the eye changes, causing light rays to bend (refract) incorrectly, focusing images in front of, instead of on the surface of, the retina.

According to the researchers, short-sightedness or near-sightedness in children is important because it puts them at risk of developing complications that increase the likelihood of developing irreversible impaired eyesight or blindness later in life.

For the purpose of determining whether or not children’s vision was affected by forced behavioural and lifestyle changes during the pandemic, the researchers examined the eyes of 1793 children who were all participants in the Hong Kong Children Eye Study (HKCES). This is an ongoing population-based study of eye conditions in children ages 6 to 8 years old that is currently in its third year.

709 children were enrolled in the study at the start of the pandemic (December 2019 to January 2020) and were followed for about eight months; 1084 children were enrolled in the study before the pandemic began and were followed for about three years.

The children’s visual acuity–the ability to see clearly–was measured and they filled in questionnaires on their lifestyle, including how much time they spent outdoors and on close work, at study entry and during subsequent clinic visits.

Around 1 in 5 (19.5%) of the children in the COVID-19 group developed short-sightedness between January and August 2020, compared with around 1 in 3 (37%) of those in the pre-COVID-19 group over a period of three years. 

And after factoring in age, gender, length of monitoring period, parental short-sightedness, and how much time was spent outdoors and on close work, the numbers of new cases of short-sightedness were higher among children in the COVID-19 group.

The estimated 1-year incidence of short-sightedness was 28%, 27%, and 26%, respectively, for 6, 7 and 8 year olds in the COVID-19 group, compared with 17%, 16%, and 15%, respectively, for 6, 7, and 8 year olds in the pre-COVID-19 group. 

These changes coincided with a reduction in the time the children spent outdoors, from around an hour and 15 minutes to around 24 minutes/day and an increase in screen time from around 2.5 hours/day to around 7 hours/day. 

The researchers also compared the current COVID-19 group with the findings of their previous study, which looked at the development of short-sightedness in children of the same ages in Hong Kong.

In the previous study, 13% of the children developed the condition over a period of 1 year. This compares with 19.5% of the COVID-19 group in the current study over a shorter period of 8 months, lending further weight to a link between the pandemic and a heightened risk of short-sightedness, suggest the researchers.

This is an observational study, and as such, can’t establish cause, added to which the research included questionnaire data, which rely on recall.

And the findings might not reflect the impact of COVID-19 in other parts of the world, where social distancing, quarantine, and school closure policies may be different, caution the researchers.

Nevertheless, they write: “Despite all these insurmountable study limitations, our initial results still show an alarming myopia progression that warrants appropriate remedial action.”

And they conclude: “[They] serve to warn eye care professionals, and also policy makers, educators and parents, that collective efforts are needed to prevent childhood myopia, a potential public health crisis as a result of COVID-19.”

Image Credit: Getty

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