Teenage photographer working in darkroom

Inscriptions: Verso: [stamped] Photograph by Freda Leinwand. [463 West Street, Studio 229G, New York, NY 10014].

Unhappy teenage boy

Inscriptions: Verso: [stamped] Photograph by Freda Leinwand. [463 West Street, Studio 229G, New York, NY 10014].

Playing ball

Inscriptions: Verso: [stamped] Photograph by Freda Leinwand. [463 West Street, Studio 229G, New York, NY 10014].

High school students

Inscriptions: Verso: [stamped] Photograph by Freda Leinwand. [463 West Street, Studio 229G, New York, NY 10014].

Teenage girl talking on the telephone

Inscriptions: Verso: [stamped] Photograph by Freda Leinwand. [463 West Street, Studio 229G, New York, NY 10014].

Supermarket delivery boys

Inscriptions: Verso: [stamped] Photograph by Freda Leinwand. [463 West Street, Studio 229G, New York, NY 10014].

Teenager in bookstore

Inscriptions: Verso: [stamped] Photograph by Freda Leinwand. [463 West Street, Studio 229G, New York, NY 10014].

High school student in St. Patrick's Day parade

Inscriptions: Verso: [stamped] Credit must be given to Freda Leinwand from Monkmeyer Press Photo Service.

Teenage girl sitting on the beach

Inscriptions: Verso: [stamped] Photograph by Freda Leinwand. [463 West Street, Studio 229G, New York, NY 10014].

High school classes: boy using sewing machine

Inscription: Verso: boy using sewing machine, home economics class, Thompson Jr. High School, Syosset, New York.

High school classes: woodworking class

Inscription: Verso: woodworking class, thompson Jr. High School, Syosset, New York.

High school classes: small appliance repair class

Inscription: Verso: small appliance repair class: Eli Whitney Vocational High School, Brooklyn New York.

Women at work: teenage photographer working in darkroom.

Inscription: Verso: Women at work: miscellaneous occupations. Rebecca Cooke, teenage photographer, New York.

High school classes: boys making pizza

Inscription: Verso: boys making pizza, 7th grade home economics class, Thompson Jr. High School, Syosset, New York.

Prevalence, Incidence and Progression of Myopia in Singaporean Adolescents

The Singapore Cohort Study of the Risk Factors for myopia (SCORM) is a longitudinal school-based study that recruited 1979 children, aged 7 to 9 years old between 1999 and 2001, who were re-examined as adolescents in 2006 and 2007. This current study is to determine the prevalence, incidence and progression of myopia among Singapore teenagers and describe any trend in the SCORM study.

At each visit, participants underwent comprehensive eye examinations that included cycloplegic autorefraction and ocular biometry measurements. The prevalence of myopia (SE<-0.5D) and high myopia (SE<-6.0D) among Singapore teenagers aged 11-18 years old was 69.1% [95% confidence interval (CI) 66.5-71.7] and 7.1% (95% CI 5.8-8.7), respectively, with the highest prevalence in people of Chinese ethnicity (p<0.001). The annual incidence was 13.7% (95% CI 9.8-17.6). Males had twice the incidence of females (p=0.043), and adolescents with longer axial lengths (p<0.001) and deeper vitreous chamber (p<0.001) had higher myopia incidence. Annual myopia progression was -0.32 Diopters (D) (SD=0.40), with no difference by age, race or gender. However, adolescents with higher myopia levels at 2006 had significantly faster myopia progression rates (p<0.001).

Myopia prevalence in Singapore teenagers, especially Singapore Chinese teenagers, is one of the highest in the world. In adolescents, there is still a high rate of new onset and rapid progression of myopia. These findings indicate that adolescence may still represent a viable period for intervention programs to mitigate myopia onset and progression.