Myopia prevalence and risk factors among medical trainees in Lebanon

Myopia is known to be one of the most common causes of impaired vision. It is on the rise, especially among high-risk groups such as medical students. Our study aims to estimate the prevalence of myopia and characterize the associated risk factors among medical trainees in Lebanon.

This descriptive cross-sectional study targeted all medical students and residents enrolled at the Lebanese University in April 2020. Ocular history data, including refractive errors and daily activities, were collected using an online survey. The primary measure was the prevalence of myopia. The secondary measures were myopia risk factors. Associations of demographic and behavioral factors were explored, and risk factors were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression.

Among 365 participants (mean age 22.8 years), 51.6% (185) were female. Myopia was found to be prevalent in 52.8% (193) of medical trainees, with a mean reported refractive error of -2.46 diopters in the study eye (right eye) and -2.41 diopters in the fellow eye (left eye). Three factors were significantly and independently associated with myopia prevalence, namely, history of myopia in siblings (P < 0.001), more hours of near activities (P = 0.026), and less outdoor activity (P = 0.007).

By quantifying the high prevalence of myopia among medical trainees in Lebanon, as well as the established familial and behavioral risk factors, our findings congruently contribute to the global perspective of this long-studied refractive error.