Myopia rate drops among young Chinese

BEIJING -- The overall myopia rate for Chinese children and adolescents in 2022 was 51.9 percent, down 0.7 percentage points from that of 2021, according to the country's disease control authority.

The 2022 figure represented a decline of 1.7 percentage points compared to the data of a nationwide myopia survey in 2018, according to monitoring data released by the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration.

The data also revealed that, among myopic students, the proportions of mild, moderate, and severe myopia are 53.3 percent, 37.0 percent, and 9.7 percent, respectively.

The overall myopia rates for primary school, junior high school, and senior high school are 36.7 percent, 71.4 percent, and 81.2 percent, respectively.

The administration said it will continue to advance myopia prevention and control efforts, including strengthening the monitoring and evaluation of myopia and its influencing factors, promoting suitable technologies for myopia prevention, and enhancing professional training.