Purpose: Amblyopia is the most common cause of unilateral visual impairment. This study investigated parents’ awareness of amblyopia in different regions of Saudi Arabia. Methods: This was a cross-sectional population study. The survey consisted of two main sections; the first section contained 13 general background questions, and the second section (10 questions) focused on awareness of amblyopia, routine vision checks and how to raise awareness of amblyopia in the community. The survey was distributed to respondents using email and social media. Results: The responses of 1649 families were received. Respondents’ age range was from 22–62 years (mean ± standard deviation = 33.6 ± 8.7 years). Most respondents had no previous knowledge of amblyopia (1155 participants, 70%), and 313 participants (19%) had no idea if their children had amblyopia. In total, 990 participants (60%) did not visit the eye clinic with their children for a routine eye exam. A total of 495 parents (30%), who were aware of amblyopia, knew of it mainly from eye clinic visits and from Internet websites. A total of 140 respondents reported that their children had amblyopia; 58.3% of those children underwent routine eye examinations once a year, and the rest underwent routine eye examinations twice a year. Conclusion: The results clearly showed a lack of amblyopia awareness among the Saudi community. This lack of awareness can lead to visual impairment among children. More efficient efforts are urgently needed from health professionals, education centres, the media and social organizations to promote awareness of amblyopia.

PurposeThe visual status of adolescents in Saudi Arabia (SA) has not been well reported. To date, the prevalence and types of refractive errors (REs), amblyopia, strabismus, and correctable visual impairments have not been quantified. The aim of the study was to investigate the visual status in adolescents in Riyadh, SA.MethodsThis study was based on a population cross-sectional and random cluster design. After design and the sample calculations, 1,007 participants, 12–20 years of age, were screened during the study. Nine participants were excluded due to ocular disorders. The participants were assessed for REs, distance visual acuity logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution, contrast sensitivity, stereoacuity, pinhole test findings, and cover–uncover test findings.ResultsThe results showed that 55.5% of the participants had some form of REs, while correctable visual impairment was found in one-fifth of the screened participants. Myopia was the dominant type (53.3%, ranged from −0.50 DS to −14.00 DS), whereas hyperopia was found in 2.2% (+2.00 DS to +5.50 DS) and astigmatism was present in 15% (−0.75 DC to −5.25 DC). Only 43% of the participants had corrected REs; however, the noncompliance for spectacle use was 20.25%.ConclusionThis study was the first attempt to investigate the visual status in adolescents in SA. It provided estimations of the REs, amblyopia, and strabismus. The high prevalence of REs emphasizes the need to identify the best proactive strategies to detect and manage REs to reduce the incidence of visual impairment in SA. Increasing awareness about eye health and employing efficient screening programs could help to address the need for REs corrections.

PURPOSE:The purpose of the study was to explore the vision status of preschool children aged 3–6 years in Al Riyadh and to identify children at risk of amblyopia.MATERIALS AND METHODS:This was a cross-sectional population-based study. Visual acuity (VA) was measured using 15-line Lea symbols, refractive error was assessed using the Mohindra near retinoscopy technique, and peak contrast sensitivity (CS) was measured with the aid of the numerical CS test. We recruited 335 children, with their parents' written consent, from 14 kindergartens.RESULTS:A total of 335 children were recruited; 42 children (13%) exhibited reduced VA (Median [interquartile ranges (IQRs)], 0.00 [0.01]); most were emmetropic (87.7%). Myopia (4.2%), hyperopia (8.1%), and astigmatism (20%) were also observed. Most children had normal CSs. About 14% of children were at risk of amblyopia. It has been observed that 26% of families have some kind of refractive error.CONCLUSIONS:It is important to perform vision screening of preschoolers. Early detection of abnormalities in refractive errors could help to minimize the effect of visual impairment.

Vitamin D deficiency is common worldwide, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa. The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency (<50 nmol/L) is very high in Saudi Arabia and is associated with several chronic illnesses. The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of short-term oral vitamin D 3 supplementation on tear film stability in dry eye subjects. Thirty male dry eye subjects aged 19-37 years (mean ± standard deviation (SD) = 26.2±5.0 years) completed the study. An agematched control group of 30 normal eye male subjects (25.6±4.3 years) was also recruited. Each subject received an oral vitamin D 3 supplement (400 IU daily) for 3 consecutive days. The tear ferning (TF), phenol red thread (PRT), and tear breakup time (TBUT) tests were performed before and 24 hours after the third dose of vitamin D 3 supplement. TF grades were significantly (Wilcoxon test, p<0.001) decreased (median (IQR) = 1.8 (0.8) in dry eye subjects after vitamin D 3 supplementation compared to those obtained before supplementation (2.3 (0.6)). TF grades were improved in 86.7% of dry eye subjects (n=26). Although PRT and TBUT tests scores were higher post-vitamin D 3 supplementation, the differences were not significant (Wilcoxon test, p>0.05). No significant differences in TF grades and PRT and TBUT scores were observed between pre-and post-vitamin D 3 supplementation in healthy controls. For the study group, there were strong correlations between measurements of PRT (OD) and PRT (OS) and between TBUT (OD) and TBUT (OS) pre-and post-vitamin D 3 supplementation. No correlation was found between TF (OD) and TF (OS) grades pre-and post-vitamin D 3 supplementation. The TF test suggests that short-term oral vitamin D 3 supplementation can improve the quality of tears in dry eye subjects. Oral vitamin D 3 supplementation can be potentially used as an effective treatment for subjects with dry eye symptoms. Our study offers important insights into how vitamin D 3 supplementation can improve tear film in dry eye patients and in turn improving patients' quality of life. Future studies are needed to investigate the long-term effect of vitamin D 3 supplementation on the stability of the tear film.

Background: A correlation coefficient is a measure of a relationship between any two quantitative and categorical variables. The coefficient describes the degree of relationship between two variables. Associated variables change in tandem – a change in one variable, and the second changes in the same or opposite direction. Correlation is a commonly used statistical procedure. Medical studies use this test widely to explore diagnosis, prognosis and predicting normative parameters for reference measurements. This test is not uncommon in the ophthalmic field, and many studies in the literature used this statistical procedure. However, in some studies, the interpretation of this test was incorrect, possibly because of the test being partially misunderstood.Aim: This study aims to review articles that used those statistic tests to provide an overview of correlation coefficient tests, their indications and interpretations. Correlation analyses and interpretations in ophthalmic data studies are also discussed.Methods: The preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses guidelines were followed and correlation studies that explored ophthalmic data were searched, investigated and reviewed. This review covered a span over the period published between 1990–2020.Results: This critical review included 64 papers. The papers were directed to investigate many variables, for example, visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, dry eye, myopia, retina and low vision. Some of those papers found significant results while the others did not report any. Their reporting and interpretation of the correlation coefficient varied widely.Conclusion: The studies reviewed suggested that there is a need for reporting, in every single study, the normality of the data, r-value, p-value and the extent of the shared variance between investigated outcomes. Lastly, the clinical implications of those studies findings are recommended to be stated clearly.