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Myopia and night lighting. Investigations on children with negative family history
Damian Czepita, Czepita Damian1, Artur Mojsa
1Department of Ophthalmology, Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin, Poland. czepita@pro.onet.pl
Insights
Night light exposure before age two is not linked to myopia in Polish children without a family history of the condition. This study suggests genetics may play a role in myopia development.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Pediatric Ophthalmology
- Genetics
Background:
- Myopia, or nearsightedness, is a growing public health concern.
- Previous research has suggested a link between early childhood light exposure and myopia development.
- Genetic predisposition is a known risk factor for myopia.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between ambient night lighting before age two and the occurrence of myopia.
- To specifically examine this relationship in a population of Polish children with no family history of myopia, thereby controlling for genetic factors.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 3905 Polish children (aged 6-18 years) with a documented negative family history of myopia were included.
- Ophthalmological examinations included retinoscopy under cycloplegia to diagnose myopia (spherical equivalent ≤ -0.50 diopters).
- Parental questionnaires gathered data on family history and early childhood night light exposure (incandescent or fluorescent lamps).
Main Results:
- No statistically significant association was found between sleeping with a room light on before age two and the presence of myopia in school-aged children (p > 0.05).
- The prevalence of myopia did not differ based on the type of lamp (incandescent or fluorescent) used for night lighting before age two (p > 0.05).
Conclusions:
- Night light exposure before the age of two is not associated with myopia in Polish children who have no family history of the condition.
- The findings contrast with previous studies, suggesting a potential interaction between early light exposure and genetic factors (family history) in myopia development.
Purpose:
The aim of our study was to investigate if ambient lighting at night before the age of 2 years is associated with the occurrence of myopia in a large population of Polish children. To eliminate the influence of genetic factors, only children with a negative family history of myopia were included.
Material And Methods:
A total of 3905 students, all of whom had a negative family history of myopia were examined (1800 boys and 2105 girls, aged 6-18 years, mean age 12.2, S.D. 3.3 years). The examination included retinoscopy under cycloplegia with 1% tropicamide. Myopia in the subjects was defined as a spherical equivalent of at least -0.50 dioptres. The parents of all students examined completed a questionnaire on the child's family history of myopia as well as the child's exposure to light emitted by incandescent or fluorescent lamps before the age of two years. Data analysis was performed using chi-squared Pearson test; p-values of <0.05 were considered statistically significant.
Results:
Sleeping until the age of two with a room light is not associated with the presence of myopia during school years (p>0.05). No differences in the use of light emitted by incandescent or fluorescent lamps on the prevalence of myopia was found (p>0.05).
Conclusions:
Myopia is not associated with night light use before age of 2 years in a population of Polish children with a negative family history of myopia. Because both, the restricted population and results differ from our previous positive associations, perhaps early light exposure and family history/genetics interact in influcencing the occurance of myopia.
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