RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NEAR WORK ACTIVITIES AND THE DEGREE OF MYOPIA IN ADOLESCENTS AT RSD DR. SOEBANDI JEMBER

Abstract

Myopia is a visual impairment characterized by difficulty seeing distant objects due to light focusing in front of the retina. The global prevalence of myopia continues to increase and is expected to reach 49.8% by 2050. One of the main risk factors for myopia is near work activities, such as reading, using gadgets, and working with computers for a long time. This study aims to evaluate the relationship between near work activities and the degree of myopia in adolescents at Dr. Soebandi Jember Hospital. This study used a descriptive analytic correlational method with a cross-sectional approach. The study sample consisted of adolescents with myopia who were selected using total sampling technique. Data were collected through a near work activity questionnaire and patient medical records, then analyzed using the Kendall Tau test. The results showed a significant relationship between near work activities and the degree of myopia (p value = 0.020; correlation coefficient = 0.264). In addition, there was a significant relationship between the length of time reading books (p = 0.025), smartphone/tablet use (p = 0.005), laptop/computer use (p = 0.036), and watching television (p = 0.042) with the degree of myopia in adolescents. The conclusion of this study is that there is a significant relationship between near work activities and the degree of myopia in adolescents at RSD dr. Soebandi Jember.