The Prevalence of Obesity is Increased in Adolescents with Amblyopia: An Analysis of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Data

Background: Amblyopia is the most common cause of vision loss in children. Amblyopia has been associated with impaired depth perception but little attention has been paid to the extent to which amblyopia increases the risk of obesity. Methods: Public-use data from the 1999-2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were used. Analyses were limited to children aged 12-18, who had a visual examination, and a best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of at least 20/40 in the better-seeing eye. Amblyopia was defined as two or more-line interocular difference in BCVA. Obesity was defined as Body Mass Index (BMI) or body fat percentage (BFP) >= 95th percentile for age and gender. Sedentary lifestyle was defined as cardiovascular fitness level (CFL) rating of "low." We used Mantel-Haenszel odds ratios (ORs) to examine the relative prevalence of obesity in children with/without amblyopia. Results: Adolescents with amblyopia (n = 360) were more likely than those without (n = 7935) to have a high BMI [OR = 1.56; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.24-1.98; p < 0.001]. The associations with either high BFP (OR = 1.20; 95% CI: 0.86-1.56, p = 0.167) or low CFL (OR = 1.15; 95% CI: 0.83-1.57; p = 0.267) were not statistically significant but in the direction of a priori hypotheses. Conclusions: This analysis of population-based data suggests that adolescents with amblyopia may be at higher risk of having obesity. Given the high prevalence of amblyopia and the range of morbidities associated with childhood obesity, targeted interventions to reduce the risk of obesity among children with amblyopia could be warranted.