Myopia, Short-sightedness Rates Very High In East Asia

Around 80% to 90% of school-leavers in major East Asian countries like China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and South Korea suffer from myopia or short-sightedness. This represents an enormous burden of disease that will lead to further problems in the future, as 10 to 20% of those affected suffer from 'high' myopia that can ultimately lead to loss of vision, impaired vision, as well as blindness.

Professor Ian Morgan, from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Vision Science, and the Australian National University in Canberra, and team report in the second paper in The Lancet Series on Ophthalmology that this extremely high prevalence of myopia is linked to increased schooling, according to recent data, which indicates that the lack of daylight exposure could have a major impact on this gigantic problem.