Epidemiological Assessment of Factors Associated with Myopia in Medical Students

Relevance. Myopia in students can lead to various problems with vision and affect quality of life and academic achievement. Aim. To analyze factors associated with the presence of myopia among medical students to develop effective methods of prevention of this disease. Materials and methods. A non-anonymous questionnaire was conducted on myopia among medical students of the first to sixth year. The questionnaire was developed based on the analysis of published data and included the demographic information, questions concerning the medical history, family history and lifestyle. The questionnaire data were supplemented with information from recording medical forms No. 025 «Medical records of patients receiving outpatient care». The data of 323 medical students were analyzed. Descriptive and logistic regression analyses were performed. Adjusted odds ratio (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for each factor were calculated. Results. The median age of students was 21 years [Q1–Q3 = 19–23], min age = 17 years, max = 31 years. According to the ophthalmologist's examination, 68.7% of students had myopia (95% CI 63.4–73.7). Healthy weight and underweight were associated with the presence of myopia compared to those who are overweight or obese: aOR 2.433 (95% CI 1.096–5.403, p = 0.029) and aOR 2.774 (95% CI 1.231–6.253, p = 0.014), respectively. The presence of 8-hour sleep is associated with a decrease in the chances of having myopia by 2,321 times (aOR 0.431; 95% CI 0.190–0.979; p = 0.044). A large number of steps per day was associated with the absence of myopia. Those who walk 10,000 steps or more per day are 7.46 times less likely to have myopia than those who walk less than 2,000 steps per day. Conclusion. We report a high prevalence of myopia in medical students. The findings suggest that health promotion, including adequate sleep and regular physical activity, can be an effective strategy to prevent the occurrence or progression of myopia and other eye complications.