The development of myopia up to the age of twenty and a comparison of refraction in parents and children.

As a part of a longitudinal birth cohort study, refraction was measured at the age of 20 years in 236 persons known to have had myopia at the age of 14 years and 266 controls (2982 refractions). The earlier the myopia had started, the more myopic the eyes were at the age of 20 years. The greatest mean refraction values, -4.94 D for males and -6.62 D for females were found when the change to myopia had started before the age of 10. The mean progression of myopia (the mean progression curves were achieved by calculating the mean refraction values at different ages) seems to continue at least to the age of 20. A female child with a myopic mother is more likely to develop myopia than a female child with a non-myopic mother and the same relation holds good between a male child and his father. The myopic refractive error seems to be greater in the children than in their parents.