Myopia and Near Work: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Frédéric Dutheil*, Tharwa Oueslati, Louis Delamarre, Joris Castanon, Caroline Maurin, Frédéric Chiambaretta, Julien S. Baker, Ukadike C. Ugbolue, Marek Zak, Ines Lakbar, Bruno Pereira, Valentin Navel

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

    25 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Background: Myopia is a global public health problem affecting quality of life and work productivity. Data is scarce regarding the effects of near work on myopia. Providing a larger meta-analysis with life-long perspective, including adults and occupational exposure seemed needed. Methods: We searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase and Science Direct for studies reporting myopia prevalence in near work. Myopia was defined as a mean spherical equivalent ≤ −0.50 diopter. We performed a meta-analysis using random-effects model on myopia prevalence, myopia progression per year, and odds ratio (OR) of myopia in near work, completed by subgroup analyses and meta-regressions on patients’ characteristics, type of work in adults, geographic zones, time and characteristics of near work. Results: We included 78 studies, representing a total of 254,037 participants, aged from 6 to 39 years. The global prevalence of myopia in near work was 35% (95% CI: 30 to 41%), with a prevalence of 31% (95% CI: 26 to 37%) in children and 46% (95% CI: 30 to 62%) in adults. Myopia progression was −0.39 diopters per year (−0.53 to −0.24 D/year), ranging from −0.44 (−0.57 to −0.31) in children to −0.25 D/year (−0.56 to 0.06) in adults. The odds of myopia in workers exposed vs. non-exposed to near work were increased by 26% (18 to 34%), by 31% (21 to 42%) in children and 21% (6 to 35%) in adults. Prevalence of myopia was higher in adults compared to children (Coefficient 0.15, 95% CI: 0.03 to 0.27). Conclusions: Near work conditions, including occupational exposure in adults, could be associated with myopia. Targeted prevention should be implemented in the workplace.

    Original languageEnglish
    Article number875
    Number of pages22
    JournalInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
    Volume20
    Issue number1
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 3 Jan 2023

    Scopus Subject Areas

    • Pollution
    • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
    • Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis

    User-Defined Keywords

    • epidemiology
    • myopia
    • near work
    • occupation
    • public health

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