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Longitudinal changes in crystalline lens thickness and power in children aged 6-12 years old

Eye volume 38, pages 1283–1289 (2024)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Objectives

To determine the three-year changes in crystalline lens power (LP) and thickness (LT) in children and their associated factors.

Methods

Schoolchildren aged 6-12 years living in Shahroud, northeast Iran were examined in 2015 and 2018. The Bennett formula was used to calculate LP. Multiple generalized estimating equations (GEE) analysis was used for data analysis.

Results

Among the 8089 examined eyes, the mean LP in Phase 1 and 2, and the three-year change were 21.61 ± 1.47D, 21.00 ± 1.42D, and -0.61 ± 0.52D, respectively. The GEE model showed that negative shifts in LP were less pronounced with increasing age (β = 0.176; p < 0.001), and were also less noticeable in hyperopes compared to emmetropes (β = 0.120; p < 0.001). The changes in LP decreased when outdoor activity increased among urban residents (β = 0.013; p = 0.039), while it increased in rural area (β = -0.020; p = 0.047). Mean three-year change in LT was 0.002 ± 0.13 mm. Female sex and aging by one year increased the LT by 0.022 mm (P < 0.001). However, LT decreased in 6-8-year-olds, while it increased in 10-12-year-old children, both in a linear fashion. The change in LT was less in myopes than in emmetropes (β = -0.018, P-value = 0.010).

Conclusion

LP decreases after three years in 6 to 12-year-old children. LT increases slightly after three years in 6 to 12-year-old children. The changes in LP and LT were associated with the refractive errors, place of residence, age and gender and outdoor activity time.

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Fig. 1: The distribution of the three-year change in crystalline lens power and thickness.
Fig. 2

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are not openly available due to the local policies and are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. Data are located in controlled access data storage at Shahroud University of Medical Sciences.

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Funding

Funding

This work was supported by the Noor Ophthalmology Research Center and Shahroud University of Medical Sciences (Grant Number: 9329, 960351).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Noor Research Centre for Ophthalmic Epidemiology, Noor Eye Hospital, Tehran, Iran

    Hassan Hashemi

  2. Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Mehdi Khabazkhoob

  3. Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

    Elham Azizi

  4. Drs. Iribarren Eye Consultants, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Rafael Iribarren

  5. Escola Superior de Tecnologia da Saúde de Lisboa (ESTeSL), Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal

    Carla Lanca

  6. Comprehensive Health Research Center (CHRC), Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal

    Carla Lanca

  7. Department of Ophthalmology, University of Warmia and Mazury, Olsztyn, Poland Żołnierska 18, 10- 561, Olsztyn, Poland

    Andrzej Grzybowski

  8. Institute for Research in Ophthalmology, Foundation for Ophthalmology Development, Poznan, Poland

    Andrzej Grzybowski

  9. Visual Optics Lab Antwerp (VOLANTIS), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp University, Wilrijk, Belgium

    Jos J. Rozema

  10. Department of Ophthalmology, Antwerp University Hospital, Edegem, Belgium

    Jos J. Rozema

  11. Ophthalmic Epidemiology Research Center, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Shahroud, Iran

    Mohammad Hassan Emamian

  12. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Akbar Fotouhi

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  1. Hassan Hashemi
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Contributions

HH, AF and MHE contributed to the conception and design of the study. MK and MHE performed the data analyses. HH, MK and EA wrote the manuscript. CL, RI, JR, AG, and AF critically revised the manuscript and contributed in acquisition, analysis, and interpretation. All authors approved the final version of manuscript.

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Correspondence to Mohammad Hassan Emamian.

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Hashemi, H., Khabazkhoob, M., Azizi, E. et al. Longitudinal changes in crystalline lens thickness and power in children aged 6-12 years old. Eye 38, 1283–1289 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41433-023-02882-5

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