Myopia rampant among teachers: experts

About 70 percent of teachers have myopia and incidence of other eye disease is also high in the profession, said medical experts ahead of Teacher’s Day, which falls on Tuesday.

To raise awareness of teachers’ eye health and pay respect to the profession, a charity program offering free myopia surgery to educators has also been launched in Shanghai, Chengdu, Qingdao, Zhengzhou and Chongqing. Teachers who have received awards of excellence can apply for the program, said Shanghai Xinshijie Eye Hospital Group.

“About half of primary and middle school teacher have myopia and the percentage is 83 among university teachers. The average incidence among all teachers is 70 percent. It's not only students who need to protect their eye health, but also teachers,” said Dr Lian Jingcai from Shanghai Xinshijie.

“Screenings find the incidence of myopia among teachers is also rising, like students, with the level of education. There is a high percentage of serious myopia among teachers, many of whom don’t have enough awareness.”

Chronic conjunctivitis is the second leading eye problem among teachers. Macular degeneration is also high, greatly effecting eye health and life quality, doctors said.