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168
as prizes to the myopes as an inducement for them to go out of doors. When
children with small degrees of myopia are allowed a specified amount of reading at
week ends, books with large and clear print are selected from the library by the
head mistress.
It is hoped, that by means such as the above, the eyesight of the myopes will
be preserved and that advantage only will result from the scheme. As abovementioned,
medical inspection is regularly and frequently carried out, and any
child showing evidence of progressive myopia would be promptly detected.
Observations
on Myopic
Children in
Sight Saving
Classes.
General.
Enquiry has within the past eighteen months been made made by Dr. McVail,
into the progress of myopia in children in attendance for over three years at sight
saving classes. The number of cases investigated was 150, and the average time for
which records were obtained was 4'8 years, this period occurring between 5 and 14
or 15 years of age.
The myopia was in each case measured from the glasses worn at the beginning
and at the end of the period. Myopic children are, as a rule, examined at Council
clinics or at hospitals every six or nine months, and the glasses worn may be taken
as some indication of the progress of the myopia. Doubtful cases, or those where
the child had not attended an eye department regularly, were omitted. The glasses
in some instances showed a slight decrease in strength at the end of the period.
Such cases were included in the enquiry, the total decrease being subtracted from
the total increase.
Number of
children.
Total increase in myopia both
eyes added.
Total decrease in myopia both
eyes added.
Years.
D spheres.
D cylinders.
D spheres.
D cylinders.
150
387
105.25
49.75
47.5
718
Deducting the decrease, the remaining increase is 337.25 D spheres and 57.75 D
cylinders in 718 years, or 0.47 D sphere and 015 D cylinder per year (both eyes added).
Taking the mean of the four meridians of the two eyes, the average increase is 027
dioptre per eye per year.
It is unfortunately impossible to compare this very slight increase with that of
myopic children who are not taught under sight saving conditions, as all with five
dioptres or so of myopia in the better eye are admitted to special classes when the
defect is discovered, as a rule about seven years of age.
Possibly the findings as estimated by the glasses are somewhat lower than they
should be. Minus lenses of high degree are expensive, and the tendency probably
is for the oculist to advise change as seldom as practicable. Even, however, if the
increase found were doubled, the indications are that with proper precautions
myopia in children of school age is, as a rule, only slightly progressive. Cases in
which decided advancement occurred even at sight saving classes are discussed later.
Physical
condition.

The percentage of under-nourished children is about two and a half times as
great as amongst the ordinary school population. Children of all ages from nine to
fourteen years are included in the above table, and the condition of the teeth probably
differs little from that of normal children. Nearly all with sound teeth had
received treatment, some several times.