Impact of life activity in conditions of digital environment on the students’ organ of sight

Abstract

The growth of eye disease incidence in the juvenile population amidst increasing visual load, which, among other factors, results from the use of electronic devices (ED), outlines the search for effective preventive measures, geared towards preservation of health of young people. The study was aimed to assess the impact of life activity upon exposure to digital environment on the organ of sight in schoolchildren and college students. The study was carried out in 2017-2020 at Dolgoprudny gymnasium and Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University. A total of 805 schoolchildren and college students underwent ophthalmologic examination. Accommodative response was registered with Speedy-K Ver. MF-1 autorefractor keratometer (Japan). A standardized questionnaire, tailored by the authors to meet the requirements of the study, was used to assess the regime for the use of ED by students. Inclusion criteria: schoolchild, college student, ophthalmologic examination data and submitted informed consent available, correctly completed questionnaire. Statistical processing was performed using the Statistica 13.0 software. All students were the ED owners. Only 9.9% of primary school students, 2.7% of secondary school students, 1.9% of senior secondary school students, and 0.9% of college students did not use ED every day. Significant negative correlation was revealed between the students’ vision acuity and the daily total time of using the ED, as well as the duration of the ED continuous use (р≤0.05). Accommodation weakness was detected in 88.76% of students with early stage of myopia; accommodative response close to normal was less common (11.24%). The increase in daily total time of using the ED by 2 hours and more results in higher prevalence of functional vision problems (p≤0.05), and the trend of increasing the number of high myopia cases. The data obtained define the need of improving the students’ hygiene training starting from the preschool age.