Anxiety, mood disorders more prevalent in adolescents with myopia
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Key takeaways:
- Prevalence of these disorders increases with myopia severity.
- Myopia prevention strategies and psychological counseling are needed.
Adolescents with myopia have up to a twofold increased risk of experiencing anxiety and mood disorders, and the odds for both conditions increase with myopia severity, according to a study.
Data from 891,505 Israeli adolescents evaluated before military service were analyzed. The age range of participants was between 16 and 20 years, and 57.7% were male. A total of 279,419 subjects had myopia, which was mild (–0.75 D to –3 D) in 19.3% of the cases, moderate (–3 D to –6 D) in 9.6% and severe (–6 D or more) in 2.5%.
Anxiety was diagnosed in 8,683 subjects (1%) and mood disorders in 4,163 subjects (0.5%). Prevalence of anxiety and mood disorders was higher in adolescents with myopia as compared with those without (1.2% vs. 0.9% for anxiety and 0.6% vs. 0.4% for mood disorders) and increased with myopia severity. No differences were reported in relation to sex, best corrected visual acuity and health status.
The authors noted that, despite vision correction, myopia, especially high myopia, significantly affects quality of life in terms of “physical discomfort, limitations in daily activities and psychosocial effects, especially during the vulnerable period of adolescence.”
“Our findings underscore the importance of early identification and prevention of myopia progression in children to address both its direct vision-related outcomes and broader psychosocial implications during adolescence,” they wrote.
They also suggested that psychological counseling could be beneficial as a part of myopia management.
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