Comparison of ophthalmic findings between obese and healthy children

Abstract

Objective: Obesity is becoming a serious health problem in pediatric population. There is limited information about ophthalmic findings in childhood obesity. We aimed to investigate the ophthalmic findings in obese children and compare them with healthy ones. Material and Methods: Patients were divided into 2 groups according to their body mass index (BMI) percentiles; 49 obese children (BMI >95th percentile), 33 control subjects (BMI <85th percentile). Demographic features and ophthalmological examination including tear break up time, Schirmer 1 test with topical anesthesia, intraocular pressure (IOP), central corneal thickness (CCT), and biometric measurements were compared between the groups. Results: IOP, CCT, and anterior chamber depth (ACD) values were significantly lower in obese group than control group. The mean tear break up time and median Schirmer test values were similar between the groups [9.5±2.7 sc and 16 mm (interquartile range 8.5-23.5) in obese group, 9.6±2.1 sc and 10 mm (interquartile range 6.5-18) in control group; p=0.83 and p=0.093, respectively]. Conclusions: Our study demonstrated that IOP, CCT, and ACD values seemed to be lower in obese children. However, dry eye findings did not accompany obesity in these children.