title: Myopia in Melanesian school children in Vanuatu.
abstract: Visual acuity, refraction, and the components of refraction were measured in 788 Melanesian children in the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu. Of the 788 children, 97.2% were found to have uncorrected visual acuity of 6/6, 96.8% were found to have a spherical equivalent refraction between -0.25 and +1.00 D, 2.9% were found to have myopia of 0.50 or more, 0.25% were found to have hyperopia of 1.25 D or more, and 0.25% were found to have refractive astigmatism of 1.25 D or more. The low prevalence of ametropia may be considered to be due mainly to genetic factors; however, the possibility of environmental factors cannot be ruled out.
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, College of Optometry, TX 77004.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Grosvenor
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003906:Developing Countries; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009216:Myopia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012029:Refraction, Ocular; D009514:Vanuatu; D014792:Visual Acuity