Lockdown increases the prevalence of myopia.

Recent lockdown strategies used to prevent transmission of COVID-19 meant that a lot of us spent more time indoors, especially children, who were left doing their schoolwork on their computers. This combination of increased near work and less time outside seems to have increased the prevalence of myopia. Recent studies in the Netherlands and China have found an increase in the number of children becoming myopic. In the Chinese study, up to 120 thousand students were followed and it was found that, children between the ages of 6 and 8, were up to 3 times more likely to have myopia in 2020 compared to previous years. The authors labelled this quarantine myopia.

Certainly, increased near work seems to be driving the increase in myopia prevalence. If your child is complaining of poor vision make an appointment to have their vision checked. We can advise you on the best ways to treat/slow down myopia progression using the latest techniques.