Refractive Errors in Medical Students in a Teaching Hospital

Abstract

Refractive errors are contributing to a severe public health problem. The increasing prevalence rates of myopia have reached epidemic levels in several areas. This study aimed to determine the prevalence rates of refractive errors in medical students. A prospective study was conducted in the Department of Ophthalmology, over a period of one year from January 2020 to December 2020. Medical students were randomly selected, as a total of 250 subjects. All underwent an ophthalmic examination. Of 250 students, 148(59.2%) cases of RE were documented. The most common cases were female (89, 60.1%), whereas males were (59, 39.9%). Of these, 98 students have myopia (66.2%), 42 cases have astigmatism (28.4%) and 8 cases have hypermetropia (5.4%). The late classes (6th) stage has the most frequent RE cases. Myopia was the predominant RE among medical students. Advanced class and females are predisposing factors.