title: Increases in the prevalence of reduced visual acuity and myopia in Chinese children in Guangzhou over the past 20 years.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To estimate the prevalence of myopia based on reduced unaided visual acuity (VA) in Chinese school children over the past 20 years.
  
  
  METHODS
  Guangzhou school health authorities have measured VA on Grade 1-12 students from 1988 to 2007 annually, using a LogMAR tumbling E chart. VA is reported as Snellen categories: normal (VA ≥ 6/6), mildly reduced (6/9 < VA <6/6), moderately reduced (6/18 < VA ≤ 6/9), and severely reduced VA (VA ≤ 6/18).
  
  
  RESULTS
  In 1988, over 80% of children in Grade 1 (age 6 years) and about 30% in Grade 12 (age 17 years) had normal unaided VA. By 2007, this dropped to only 60% in Grade 1 and about 10% in Grade 12. Conversely, the prevalence of moderately and severely reduced unaided VA increased from 6.2% in Grade 1 and 62.5% in Grade 12 in 1988 to 14.5% in Grade 1 and 84.11% in Grade 12 in 2007. This rate was unchanged from 2003 to 2007 at both the Grade 1 and Grade 12 levels.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In Guangzhou, the prevalence of reduced unaided VA has increased markedly in the past 20 years, but has stabilized in the past few years. This increase may result from environmental changes, such as increased schooling intensity and urbanization.
authors.affiliation: 1] State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat Sen University, Guangzhou, China [2] ARC Centre of Excellence in Vision Science and Visual Sciences Group, Research School of Biology, College of Medicine, Biology and Environment, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Xiang
authors.affiliation: 1] State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat Sen University, Guangzhou, China [2] Helen Keller International, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.identifier: 0000000269122810
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat Sen University, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.affiliation: Guangzhou Student's Health Care Institute of the Guangzhou City, Department of Education, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mai
authors.affiliation: Discipline of Orthoptics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Sydney, Lidcombe, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.affiliation: ARC Centre of Excellence in Vision Science and Visual Sciences Group, Research School of Biology, College of Medicine, Biology and Environment, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
authors.forename: I G
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Morgan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D044466:Asian People; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009216:Myopia / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D015995:Prevalence; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology