Prevalence of Myopia among 12‐ to 13‐Year‐Old Schoolchildren in Northern Mexico

Purpose. The aim of this article was to report the prevalence of refractive errors, mainly myopia, among 12‐ to 13‐year‐old children in a metropolitan setting in Mexico. Methods. A total of 1035 schoolchildren were examined in a field study in Monterrey, Mexico. The examination included best‐corrected visual acuity and refraction during cycloplegia. A sample of the children was sent to a pediatric eye clinic and underwent cycloplegic refraction with an autorefractor. Results. We found a prevalence of myopia (≥−0.5 D SE) of 44%, whereas bilateral myopia was present in 37% of the children. In the total sample, high myopia (≥−5D) was found in 1.4%. The prevalence of myopia was significantly higher in girls. Only 20% of children with bilateral myopia used prescription glasses; 8% had prescribed glasses, but did not use them. Hyperopia (≥+1 D) was present in 6.0% of the total population, and astigmatism (≥−1.5 D) was present in 9.5%. Conclusions. The prevalence of myopia among 12‐ to 13‐year‐old children in Mexico is high. The majority of cases are low grade, and a large number of the myopic children do not have, or do not use, prescription glasses.