● Aticle
ZHOU Liang, DONG Yanhui, ZENG Ling, REN Qiaoqiao, ZHANG Li
Objective To investigate the prevalence and changing trends of myopia and high myopia among children and adolescents in Sichuan from 2021 to 2024, and to provide a basis for policy formulation. Methods From 2021 to 2024, 183 districts (counties) in 21 cities (prefectures) of Sichuan were designated as monitoring sites. Nine schools (kindergartens, primary and secondary schools) were selected in each district, and seven in each county, with a stratified cluster sampling method. At least 80 students from each grade of each school were enrolled for vision screening. The myopia and high myopia rate were analyzed using Chi-square tests for changing trend. Results During this period, the detection rates of myopia among children and adolescents in Sichuan were 51.4%, 47.8%, 47.4%, and 46.7%, respectively, showing a significant downward trend (χ2=1 294.893, P<0.001), with an average annual percent change range of -1.6. The detection rates of high myopia were 4.8%, 4.4%, 3.8%, and 3.9%, respectively, showing a downward trend (χ2=413.033, P<0.001), with an average annual percent change range of -0.3. In both genders, stratified analysis revealed consistent downward trends of myopia (Male: χ2=604.863, P<0.001; Female: χ2=711.790, P<0.001), with an average annual percent change range of -1.5 and -1.6, and girls exhibited higher myopia rate than that among boys in each year (χ2=1 004.078, 1 321.610, 1 244.378, 1 307.335, all P<0.001), as well as the high myopia (Male: χ2=149.029, P<0.001;Female: χ2=272.354, P<0.001), with an average annual percent change range of -0.2 and -0.4, and girls exhibited higher high myopia rate than that among boys in each year (χ2=71.301, 69.574, 54.266, 31.521, all P<0.001). Stratified analysis by educational stage showed that the detection rate of myopia in preschool, primary school and junior high school stages showed a downward trend (χ2=181.504, 186.019, 224.029, all P<0.001), while it showed an increasing trend in the senior high school (χ2=204.661, P<0.001). The average annual percent changes were -1.4,-0.8,-1.2 and +1.0, respectively. The detection rates of high myopia in preschool, primary school, and junior high school showed a fluctuating downward trend (χ2=6.779, 27.538, 52.228, all P<0.01), with an average annual percent change range of -0.02, -0.02, -0.17, respectively, while no statistically significant differences were observed in the senior high schools (χ2=0.114, P=0.736). Conclusion Although overall myopia prevalence in Sichuan’s children and adolescents has declined, the rising trend among senior high school students warrants urgent attention.