USC Eye Study Finds Near-Sightedness Growing

The largest study of childhood eye diseases undertaken in the U.S. confirms that the incidence of childhood myopia among American children has more than doubled over the last 50 years, USC and the National Institutes of Health announced Wednesday.

The findings from the Multi-Ethnic Pediatric Eye Disease Study echo research among adults and children in Asia, where 90 percent or more of the population have been diagnosed with near-sightedness, up from 10 to 20 percent 60 years ago, according to Dr. Rohit Varma, and director of the USC Eye Institute at Keck Medicine at USC.

Possible reasons for the increase in myopia among children and adults are too much “screen time” and not enough sunlight, Varma said.

“While research shows there is a genetic component, the rapid proliferation of myopia in the matter of a few decades among Asians suggests that close-up work and use of mobile devices and screens on a daily basis, combined with a lack of proper lighting or sunlight, may be the real culprit behind these dramatic increases,” Varma said.

“More research is needed to uncover how these environmental or behavioral factors may affect the development or progression of eye disease.”

The study conducted by researchers and clinicians from the USC Eye Institute at Keck Medicine at USC in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health found that the incidence of childhood myopia in the U.S. is greatest in black children, followed by Asian-American children, Hispanic and non- Hispanic white children.

From 2003 through 2011, free eye exams were provided at USC Eye Institute clinics to more than 9,000 Los Angeles-area children ages 6 months through 6 years for the study.

“In addition to being the largest pediatric eye study ever undertaken, it is the first of its kind to examine children as young as 6 months old,” Varma said.

“Typically, children do not undergo vision testing until they reach school age. By including younger children, we have the opportunity to identify eye diseases and their causes at the formative stages.”

USC Eye Institute researchers and clinicians collected basic health information during a home visit with the child and parents, followed by a detailed eye examination under dilation that collected more than 5,000 eye measurements for each child.

Myopia is a condition where objects up close appear clearly, while objects far away may appear blurry.

With myopia, light focuses in front of the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye, rather than on the retina. There is no cure, although its progression can be slowed.

--City News Service