Myopia, or nearsightedness, was assumed to be a minor vision deficit that might be corrected with glasses, contact lenses, or surgery. Examination shows an epidemic global health condition with significant economic impacts. With the epidemic of myopia cases coast to coast—most notably in children and young adults—the effect moves far beyond individual inconvenience to become a huge burden on individuals, families, health care systems, and economies as a whole.
A Global Pandemic on the Horizon
More than 2.6 billion people worldwide are myopic and are estimated to increase up to 5 billion by 2050, according to the Brien Holden Vision Institute's estimate. The rapid rise has been attributed to new lifestyles involving increased screen use, decreased outdoor activities, and intense educational pressures. High rates of over 80% myopia are being witnessed most notably in East Asia, but China, South Korea, and Singapore are also not exempt.
This epidemiologic shift is not only a matter of public health—it's economic, too. Myopia can result in vision impairment, lost productivity, and other lifetime health care costs, particularly in high myopia, increasing the risk of blindness and serious eye disease including retinal detachment, glaucoma, and myopic macular degeneration.
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The Direct Costs: Controlling Myopia
Direct costs at the individual level are monitoring and vision adjustment. These are:
Eye examinations and diagnosis
Corrective spectacles (glasses) or contact lenses
Refractive surgery (e.g., LASIK)
Special treatments (e.g., orthokeratology, atropine eye drops)
These ongoing expenses can amount to staggering sums, particularly over tens of decades. In wealthier nations, where funds are plentiful for spending on sophisticated remedial treatments, expenditure per capita per year can be $100 to $800 or more, depending upon the form and extent of treatment.
Health centers are also impacted. Public health programs, subsidies by the government, and treatment centers must be offered to treat and prevent myopia, particularly in lower-income populations where eye-care is not affordable. Otherwise, the total direct healthcare cost of myopia would be billions of dollars a year in developed countries alone.
The Indirect Costs: Lost Productivity and Reduced Quality of Life
While direct costs are expensive, indirect costs most likely account for the lion's share of the economic burden. Untreated or uncorrected myopia is likely to result in:
Poorer school performance among children and adverse impact on potential career longevity
Decreased work productivity among adults due to blurred vision or its sequelae
Early retirement and absence from work due to loss of vision or blindness
Greater caregiver dependence and care system
A 2019 article published in Ophthalmology estimated that the global yearly productivity loss to uncorrected myopia is more than $200 billion. These are disproportionately carried by middle- and low-income nations, where vision correction is not easily affordable.
Apart from that, vision loss due to high myopia adds to the cost of a poor quality of life. The patients are no longer permitted to drive, read, and engage in other activities that require clear visual acuity. Loss of independence creates depression, dread, and isolation and adds to the social and economic cost.
High Myopia: A Looming Crisis
Severe myopia—much more frequently than not, a refractive problem of -6.00 diopters or more—is not only a more severe type of myopia but an entrance into serious eye disease. Treatment of complications of severe myopia is also more expensive and may include:
Repetitive specialist follow-ups
Complicated imaging and monitoring
Advanced surgery
Extended visual rehabilitation
The cost of treatment throughout an individual's lifetime for an individual who develops serious complications as a result of high myopia is 5 to 10 times more than a mild or moderate case of myopia. The cost is higher since the number of cases of high myopia increases at a faster rate.
Investment in Prevention and Early Intervention
There has to be a multi-dimensional approach in lowering the cost of myopia and emphasizes strongly on prevention, public awareness, and early detection. It encompasses:
Promoting children's outdoor play, which has been found to retard onset
Implementing school vision screening programs
Lowering vision correcting equipment into affordability
Subsidizing the identification of myopia controlling equipment and medication
Public health policy has to address these threats as well. An investment in children's eye care, for example, pays off richly by preventing future medical expenses and enhancing learning ability.
Conclusion: Seeing the Big Picture
Prevalence of myopia is not just a health-care matter—it's a problems in the socioeconomic with policy solutions. Economic cost of myopia ranges from direct costs of health care to overall loss of productivity, with increasingly bigger proportions being absorbed by high myopia and its complications. Governments, institutions of health care delivery, schools, and parents need to respond together to forestall this impending crisis.
It is only through investment in early intervention, expanding access to eye care, and generating international awareness that we stand any chance of making the economic cost of myopia less and maintaining the vision and economic health of future generations. Stopping the myopia epidemic on its current path isn't a question of more sight—it's an issue of economic responsibility.