The Prevalence of Asthenopia and its Determinants Among Schoolchildren

Objectives The current study aimed at determining asthenopia prevalence and its associated factors in a population of high school students. Methods In the current cross sectional study, samples were selected from high school students (range, 12 to 18 years) in Kermanshah city, Iran, through stratified cluster sampling. Any person with at least 1 symptom was considered to have asthenopia. Results Of the 1070 selected samples, 1040 participated, and examinations were completed for 901 students. The prevalence of asthenopia was 49.4% (45.7 to 53.2). The prevalence of asthenopia was 62.8% (51.9 to 73.8) and 47.7% (43.8 to 51.7) in males and females, respectively (P = 0.013). Asthenopia prevalence increased from 21.4% in 12-year-old to 63.9% in 18-year-old cases (P < 0.001). The most common symptom in the study was tearing (20.03%) and eye pain (19.88%) during near-work and reading. Conclusions The prevalence of asthenopia in this student population was high. Since asthenopia can interfere with near-work, its treatment merits high importance in school-age children.