Clinical Study
Eye (2008) 22, 542–546; doi:10.1038/sj.eye.6702693; published online 12 January 2007
Near work, education, family history, and myopia in Greek conscripts
No proprietary interest or funding involved. Part of paper presented as poster at XXII Congress of ESCRS, Paris 2004
A Konstantopoulos1, G Yadegarfar2 and M Elgohary3
- 1Southampton Eye Unit, Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust, Southampton, Hampshire, UK
- 2Public Health Sciences and Medical Statistics Group, Medical School, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton University, Southampton, UK
- 3Moorfields Eye Hospital, London, UK
Correspondence: A Konstantopoulos, Southampton Eye Unit, Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust, Tremona Road, Southampton SO16 6YD, UK. Tel: +44 2380 777222; Fax: +44 2380 798742; E-mail: ariskons@yahoo.com
Received 21 September 2006; Accepted 17 November 2006; Published online 12 January 2007.
Abstract
Aims
To investigate potential factors associated with the presence of myopia in a cohort of young adult men carrying out their military service in Greece.
Methods
A nested case–control study of 200 conscripts (99 myopes and 101 non-myopes). The cohort consisted of approximately 1000 conscripts in compulsory national service. All cohort members had been screened for refractive errors by Snellen visual acuity measurement at presentation to military service; individuals not achieving visual activity 6/6 underwent noncycloplaegic refraction. The study sample consisted of the first 99 myopic and 101 nonmyopic conscripts who attended the study. In-person interviews of these 200 conscripts were conducted to obtain information on family history, occupation, level of education, near-work activities, and sleeping behaviour. 
2 and Mann–Whitney tests were used as univariate analysis methods to identify the potential factors associated with the presence of myopia. Multiple logistic regression was used to estimate the adjusted relative risk of myopia.
Results
Univariate analysis showed that parental family history (P<0.001), older age (P<0.001), tertiary education (P<0.001), hours of reading per day (P<0.001), hours of computer use per day (P<0.001), and higher social classes (P<0.001) were associated with myopia. Sleeping in artificial or ambient light was not associated with myopia (P=0.75). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that older age (OR=1.25, 95% CI 1.05–1.49), tertiary education (OR=12.67, 95% CI 3.57–44.88) and parental family history (OR=3.39, 95% CI 1.56–7.36) were independently associated with myopia.
Conclusion
In young Greek conscripts, parental family history, older age, and education level are independently associated with myopia.
Keywords:
myopia, risk factors, Greece, conscripts
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