Effect of refractive correction of myopia on health-related quality of life among children aged 3–12 years: a prospective observational cohort study

To analyze refractive changes and health-related quality of life (QOL) in children with myopia aged 3–12 years and to explore the effects of refractive correction on the QOL of children in different age groups and their parents. A 1-year prospective cohort study was conducted with 116 children aged 3–6 years and 98 children aged 7–12 years. Refractive tests are performed in 2022,and all children were prescribed with full correction single-vision spectacles.The Children’s Quality of Life Scale (PedsQL4) and Family Impact Scale (PedsQL2) were administered to the children and their parents, respectively. Furthermore, the above tests were repeated one year later. The annual increase in myopia among children aged 3–6 years and 7–12 years was − 0.58 ± 0.67D/year and − 0.99 ± 0.57D/year, respectively.The difference between the two age groups was statistically significant ( P <0.001).Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that age group, degree of childhood myopia, and outdoor activity time are independent influencing factors for the annual variation in SE.After wearing full correction single-vision spectacles for one year), the PedsQL total score of the children aged 7–12 years significantly improved (86.63; IQR (interquartile range, IQR): 78.22–91.78 vs. 78.56; IQR: 73.53–84.06, P = 0.001). Moreover, the median total parental survey score in the 3-6-year-old and–7-12-year-old groups was significantly higher ([75.11; IQR: 71.73–82.86 vs. 82.15; IQR: 75.90-89.36, P = 0.007]; [73.87; IQR: 67.45–80.05 vs. 80.20; IQR: 73.60-83.07, P = 0.011]), and the difference was statistically significant. The severity of myopia increased more rapidly in school-aged children than in pre-school children. After refractive correction, the QOL of children and their parents tended to improve, especially among school-aged children.