Prevalence of Visual Impairment in Preschool Children in Southern China

Abstract

PurposeThe goal of this study is to assess the prevalence and distribution of visual impairment in preschool children in southern China.MethodsPreschool children aged 36–83 months were enrolled in a vision screening program in Shantou City. Visual acuity test and non-cycloplegic refraction were conducted. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) guidelines, visual impairment was defined as uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) in either eye <20/50, 20/40, and 20/32 in children aged 36–47, 48–59, and 60–83 months, respectively, as well as an interocular difference (IOD) of ≥ two lines of UCVA.ResultsThe UCVA test was successfully performed on 7,880 children (94.6% of the enrolled population). A total of 938 (11.9%; 95% CI 11.2–12.6) children were found to have reduced UCVA in the worse eye, and 393 (5%; 95% CI 4.5–5.5) of the children had an IOD of two or more lines. Combining the reduced UCVA with the IOD criteria identified 1,032 (13.1%; 95% CI 12.4–13.8) children with visual impairment. UCVA in preschool children improves with age naturally and boys have slightly better age-adjusted UCVA than girls. Causes of reduced visual acuity included uncorrected refractive error, amblyopia, congenital cataract, and others. The cylindrical diopter in the right eye of children with reduced vison was higher than that of children with normal vision (1.19 ± 1.05 vs. 0.52 ± 0.49, P < 0.001). A total of 146 (1.9%, 95% CI 1.6–2.2) of the preschool children wore spectacles. The proportion of wearing spectacles increased with age (χ2 = 35.714, P < 0.001), but with IOD increasing by.1 logMAR, the odds of wearing spectacles decreased by 44.8%.ConclusionThis study provided data on the prevalence of visual impairment in preschool children in China by large-scale school-based vision screening. Further studies should be conducted to verify the benefit from vision screening.

Analyzing the epidemic situation and influencing factors of childhood pneumonia during the COVID-19 epidemic period in Laiwu, China

“…The selection of risk factors in this study refers to the research methods of scholars at home and abroad [ 10 , 11 ] and was partially revised according to the specific situation of the Laiwu area. The survey included the following 5 parts: Demographic characteristics, including sex and age; Feeding, whether the child is premature and breastfed; The child’s health, including whether the child has pollen allergy and the number of hospitalizations in the past 6 months; The children’s living environment, including whether pets are kept at home, whether the home has been decorated in the past year, and whether they are often exposed to secondhand smoke; and Lifestyle habits, including whether children wear masks when are outdoors and whether they often exercise.…”

A human-machine interaction system for visual acuity test based on gesture recognition

“…The precise design of the optotypes' size holds significant importance in determining the measurement range and accuracy [9]. In accordance with China's national standard GB11533-2011, the standard optotype shape is a square resembling the letter "E" featuring three strokes of equal length.…”

Cost-effectiveness of screening for amblyopia among kindergarten children in China

“…Amblyopia mostly manifests as reduced vision in one eye, and the risk of lifetime bilateral visual impairment (VI) is almost double for children with unilateral amblyopia because of the increased risk of damage to the healthy eye ( Tailor et al, 2016 ). Epidemiological surveys show that the prevalence of amblyopia among preschool children is about 1.09 %–4.83 % in China ( Pi et al, 2012 , Li et al, 2019 , Wang et al, 2022 ). The optimal time to treat amblyopia is during the sensitive stage of visual development, which is also the risk period for its onset.…”