title: Characterising visual deficits in children of an urban elementary school in Taiwan.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim was to screen children from Grades 1 to 6 in an urban elementary school in Central Taiwan for visual deficits and associated parameters and, as an extension, to examine the acceptance of cycloplegic therapy as well as the lag in optimal vision correction.
  
  
  METHODS
  Of 900 students in one school, 731 participated in the study, with parental consent. Data from 694 students, who had also completed a vision correction history were analysed. In addition to body height and weight, the screening included vision, non-cycloplegic autorefraction and distance retinoscopy, axial length and functional testing.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a decrease in students with vision of 1.0 or better from 55.8 per cent in Grade 1 to 20.0 per cent in Grade 6. The decreases between Grades 2 and 3 and Grades 5 and 6 were significant. These trends were in general agreement with those based on refractive error and axial length. The students had abnormal functional findings including: stereoscopic vision, 9.2 per cent; cover tests, 14.1 per cent; pupillary responses, 13.8 per cent; and less commonly in extraocular muscular functions (3.0 per cent) and colour vision (5.2 per cent). A full 40 per cent of students received cycloplegic therapy with 25 per cent dropping out for various reasons. These cases were generally associated with lower vision and higher myopia. A lag between subnormal vision and optical correction was also observed with 55.1 per cent apparently not optimally corrected. Other parameters, including body height, weight and body mass index were not correlated with vision or refractive error.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Age-dependent increase in the prevalence of myopia appears to continue despite the common practice of topical cycloplegic therapy in Taiwan. Timely correction of the refractive error is also lacking. While maintaining a visual acuity of 1.0 or better for all students at all times is not possible, this lag might be shortened by more frequent screening and/or direct provision of optical aids.
authors.affiliation: Department of Optometry, College of Medical Science and Technology, Chung Shun Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, Republic of China.
authors.forename: Hong-Ming
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Han-Yin
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: David Pei-Cheng
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Han-Hsin
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Shyan-Tarng
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Shang-Min
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Yeh
authors.forename: Mei-Ling
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Jung-Kai
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Tseng
authors.forename: Kuo-Chen
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Su
authors.forename: Kuang-Wen
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Tseng
authors.forename: Bo-Yie
authors.initials: BY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Ching-Jen
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Hsiao
authors.forename: Shuan-Yu
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Ching-Ying
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Cheng
mesh_terms: D001827:Body Height; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D009184:Mydriatics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012029:Refraction, Ocular; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology; D014504:Urban Health; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014785:Vision, Ocular
chemical_list: D009184:Mydriatics