A recent investigation reveals that the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated the incidence of myopia among children and adolescents globally, with projections indicating that the number of affected individuals may exceed 740 million by 2050.
The rising rates of myopia, or nearsightedness, in children have raised significant concerns.
This widespread issue has become a matter of public health interest, particularly among researchers in the field.
Myopia is a common vision disorder that allows for clear vision of nearby objects while rendering distant objects blurry. This condition occurs when the shape of the eye or certain components within it cause light rays to bend or refract improperly.
As a result, light rays do not converge on the retina as they should; instead, they focus in front of it, leading to the visual distortions characteristic of myopia.
The research:
A recent study published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology has revealed that around one-third of children and adolescents worldwide are impacted by myopia, according to researchers from Sun Yat-Sen University in China and Henan Provincial People’s Hospital. This research analyzed data from more than five million young individuals across 50 countries on all six continents.
“Based on our trend analysis, it has been observed that there has been a significant rise in the occurrence of myopia among children and adolescents globally over the past 30 years, with the prevalence increasing from 24.32% to 35.81%. This increase has been particularly notable after the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic,” says the research.
The prevalence of myopia has surged three times from 1990 to 2023, currently impacting 36% of the global population. Research highlights that this condition is emerging as a major health issue worldwide, with forecasts indicating that the number of cases may exceed 740 million by the year 2050.
The findings reveal that the rates of short-sightedness are especially pronounced in Asia, where 85% of children in Japan and 73% in South Korea are affected. Furthermore, more than 40% of children in both China and Russia are also experiencing this vision impairment.
