Prevalence of amblyopia and strabismus in African-American and Hispanic children

UnrestrictedAmblyopia and strabismus are serious disorders of childhood vision development that can lead to permanent vision loss. The Multi-Ethnic Pediatric Eye Disease Study is a population-based cross-sectional evaluation of the prevalence of vision disorders in children aged 6 to 72 months in Los Angeles County, California. A comprehensive eye examination was completed by 77% of eligible children. Strabismus was detected in 2.4% of Hispanic/Latino children and 2.5% of African-American children (p=0.81), and was more prevalent in older children than in younger children. Amblyopia was detected in 2.6% of Hispanic/Latino children and 1.5% of African-American children, a statistically significant difference (p=0.02). The majority (78%) of the cases of amblyopia were attributable to refractive error, which can be corrected with glasses. Amblyopia prevalence did not vary with age. These findings may help to optimize the timing and modality of preschool vision screening programs