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Updated: May 14, 2026
Binocular Dynamic Visual Acuity in Eyeglass-Corrected Myopic Patients
Published on: March 29, 2022
Body stature growth trajectories during childhood and the development of myopia
Kate Northstone1, Jeremy A Guggenheim, Laura D Howe
1School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom. Kate.Northstone@bristol.ac.uk
Insights
Childhood growth trajectories influence eye size but have minimal impact on myopia development. Early height and weight patterns correlate with axial length and corneal curvature by age 10.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Pediatrics
- Genetics
Background:
- Stature is a cumulative result of growth over time.
- Understanding growth's impact on vision is crucial for early intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between height and weight growth trajectories from birth to age 10 years.
- To determine if these trajectories correlate with refractive error and eye size at ages 11 and 15 years.
Main Methods:
- Prospective analysis of a UK birth cohort (ALSPAC).
- Growth trajectories modeled from height/weight measurements (N=6815).
- Refractive error assessed via noncycloplegic autorefraction; eye size (axial length, corneal curvature) measured at ages 11 and 15 years.
Main Results:
- Linear height growth (2.5-10 years) negatively associated with refractive error (P<0.001), explaining <0.5% variation.
- Early height/weight growth positively associated with axial length and corneal curvature (P<0.001), predicting 1-5% variation.
- Height growth after 2.5 years linked to axial length up to age 10, but not corneal curvature.
Conclusions:
- Shared growth mechanisms influence eye and body size scaling up to age 10.
- These mechanisms minimally contribute to myopia development.
- Genetic factors for adult height showed limited association with eye size traits.
Purpose:
Stature at a particular age can be considered the cumulative result of growth during a number of preceding growth trajectory periods. We investigated whether height and weight growth trajectories from birth to age 10 years were related to refractive error at ages 11 and 15 years, and eye size at age 15 years.
Design:
Prospective analysis in a birth cohort.
Participants:
Children participating in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) U.K. birth cohort (minimum N = 2676).
Methods:
Growth trajectories between birth and 10 years were modeled from a series of height and weight measurements (N = 6815). Refractive error was assessed by noncycloplegic autorefraction at ages 11 and 15 years (minimum N = 4737). Axial length (AXL) and radius of corneal curvature were measured with an IOLMaster (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Welwyn Garden City, U.K.) at age 15 years (minimum N = 2676). Growth trajectories and an allelic score for 180 genetic variants associated with adult height were tested for association with refractive error and eye size.
Main Outcome Measures:
Noncycloplegic autorefraction at ages 11 and 15 years, and AXL and corneal curvature at age 15 years.
Results:
Height growth trajectory during the linear phase between 2.5 and 10 years was negatively associated with refractive error at 11 and 15 years (P<0.001), but explained <0.5% of intersubject variation. Height and weight growth trajectories, especially shortly after birth, were positively associated with AXL and corneal curvature (P<0.001), predicting 1% to 5% of trait variation. Height growth after 2.5 years was not associated with corneal curvature, whereas the association with AXL continued up to 10 years. The height allelic score was associated with corneal curvature (P = 0.03) but not with refractive error or AXL.
Conclusions:
Up to the age of 10 years, shared growth mechanisms contribute to scaling of eye and body size but minimally to the development of myopia.
Financial Disclosure(S):
The author(s) have no proprietary or commercial interest in any materials discussed in this article.
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