Around 30 per cent of the world’s population suffers from myopia. And it is expected that this number will grow in the future. Myopia, and in particular high myopia, not only the individual but the society as a whole.
Myopia Affects Everyday Aspects Of Life
Uncorrected myopia can pose a significant challenge to children and affected individuals in everyday life. Simple tasks such as reading signs, recognising people, reading words on boards in the classroom etc. can become difficult. Participating in sports or driving with uncorrected myopia can be a safety issue. Objects in the distance may appear blurry and it might be difficult to judge distances accurately.
The impact of either uncorrected or corrected myopia on quality of life is typically evaluated using qualitative and/or quantitative measures, such as questionnaires containing items on symptoms, limitations of activity, emotional and social impact, inconvenience etc.
Evidence suggests that myopia involves restrictions on everyday activities and economic, emotional and social well-being. Overall the more severe the myopia, the greater the likelihood of having a poorer quality of life.
For example, those who suffer from high myopia may have concerns related to the appearance of their spectacle lenses and might have a financial impact related to the need for specialised lenses such as lighter and thinner lenses that cost more.
Myopia Affects Eye Health
All levels (low, moderate or high) of myopia are associated with a risk of developing ocular complications that may be sight-threatening, with the risk increasing for higher levels of myopia. While some complications can occur at any age (for example, retinal detachment), myopia predisposes the eye to develop certain other complications in later adult life (for example, myopic macular degeneration).
Each additional diopter is associated with an increase in risk of +58 per cent for myopic macular degeneration, +20 per cent for open-angle glaucoma, +21 per cent for posterior subcapsular cataract and +30 per cent for retinal detachment. These statistics underscore the importance of starting myopia management early to mitigate or reduce the risk of developing serious complications.
Academic Performance And Myopia
For obvious reasons, uncorrected myopia or poor vision in general may affect the academic performance of children with possible consequences for their future, including their careers. Scholastic performance was found to play a role with evidence suggesting a connection between educational achievements and health in later adult life.
Uncorrected visual deficits may affect attention, perseverance, and academic performance. When corrected with spectacles, an improvement in academic performance and psychosocial well-being of students was seen.
Interestingly, although spectacles are a common and widespread means of vision correction, in some situations, there can be persistent negative stereotypes associated with wearing spectacles resulting in poor compliance.
There are additional barriers that influence whether a child receives and consistently wears spectacles, such as access to vision care, costs, as well as parental education. These factors need to be considered in optometric and ophthalmic practice and any resentment towards vision correction is resolved with sensitive measures.
The Economic Impact Of Myopia
- Individual Level
The economic impact of myopia on the individual includes direct costs for diagnosis, treatment, and transport (to and from treatment places) as well as productivity loss related to time spent on eye examinations, travelling to clinics, loss of time from the workplace etc.These costs may vary depending on country of residence, severity of myopia and age of the individual. Costs are found to increase with age, especially in older individuals and attributed, in part, to the complications arising from myopia.Expenditure also increases with the severity of myopia as there may be increased costs for regular check-ups, different management solutions, or more frequent replacements due to changes in the prescription. - Societal Level
The economic burden of myopia on society includes healthcare expenses related to eye examinations and vision correction as well as expenses for medical treatments, medication, surgeries, or medical procedures due to complications.In countries with a high prevalence of myopia such as Singapore, the direct health expenditures associated with myopia were found to be higher than costs associated with some chronic diseases such as Parkinson’s disease.However, with rising prevalence, the costs of managing myopia-related conditions are expected to rise worldwide in the future. In addition to health expenditure, myopia results in the loss of productivity that impacts society.It was estimated that productivity loss, due to severe visual impairment and blindness from myopia, amounted to 94.5 billion US dollars in 2019 and could rise to 229.3 billion US dollars in 2050.9
What This Means In Practice: Myopia Management
It is expected that the burden of myopia and high myopia will rise due to the growing prevalence of myopia. At the societal level, managing myopia has a positive impact on productivity. Importantly the costs associated with correcting and controlling myopia progression are lower than the overall gains in productivity.
Thus, when it comes to practising myopia management, prevention where possible and if not early detection and approaches to slow progression are the keys to reducing the impact of myopia, lower levels of myopia reduce the risk of costs associated with managing the condition (for example, less need for frequent follow-ups, device costs etc) and reduce the risk of eye complications.
Education on the positive effects of minimising excessive near work and spending more time outdoors is a key element in myopia management.
