Purpose
To investigate the prevalence of myopia in Chinese urban and rural children.
Methods
A cross-section survey was performed on 7537 children from 5 primary schools, 2 middle schools and 2 high schools. The refractive status was examined with mydriasis. The criteria of myopia was defined as spherical equivalent <=0.75D. The prevalence of myopia in different grades was analyzed.
Results
The response rate was 99.03%. The male to female ratio was 52.6% vs. 47.4%. The age ranged from 6 to 19 years old. The prevalence of myopia was 5.8% in Grade 1 and increased to 71.9% in Grade 12 (Figure 1). The prevalence of myopia was higher in urban compared to rural children, especially in high school (Figure 1).
Conclusions
The prevalence of myopia increase with grade in Chinese urban and rural children. It is more prevalent in urban compared to rural children.