Prevalence and related factors of eye diseases in preschool children of Luohe city

Objective To explore the prevalence and influencing factors of eye diseases among preschool children for the prevention and treatment of the diseases.Methods A survey on vision,eye position,and external ocular disease was conducted among 9 821 children aged 3-6 years and selected with random cluster sampling from 17 kindergartens in Luohe city of Henan province between March and May 2015.Results Among the children surveyed,34.91%(3 429)were diagnosed with eye diseases,16.27% (1 598)with refractive error,and 11.95% (1 174)with conjunctivitis.Totally 1 614 (16.43%)children with low vision were identified;the girls had a significantly higher prevalence of low vision than the boys (17.38% vs.15.56%,P < 0.05)and the prevalence of low vision increased with the increment of age among the children.A total of 369 children were diagnosed with amblyopia (3.76%),of which,43.63%,32.79%,20.87%,and 2.71% were refractive,anisometropic,strabismic,and form deprivation amblyopia,respectively,and 67.75% (250)of the children with amblyopia were diagnosed for the first time.Conclusion Among preschool children in Luohe city,the prevalence rate of eye disease is high,with refractive error and conjunctivitis being the most common eye disease and refractive amblyopia being the most common amblyopia;the prevalence rate of eye disease increases with age and the prevalence rate in the girls is higher than that in the boys.