Do Boys & Girls See Differently?
Links to research and references provided by readers of EYEnews, in no particular order).
(CLICK HERE to read the original issue of EYEnews that sparked this debate.)

In Answers.com under the search myopia it says that females are slightly more likely ro suffer from nearsightedmess then males.

Oddly, I found studies that had findings supporting BOTH answers. This one seems to be reliable, though

http://epirev.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/18/2/175.pdf

It says females are more likely. I found other studies in Asia that said it was more common in males.

http://www.ijo.in/article.asp?issn=0301-4738;year=1983;volume=31;issue=6;spage=723;epage=728;aulast=Jain

I'd have to say sex doesn't really matter as much as other environmental factors such as stress, learned bad habits, and early minus glasses prescription.

Thank you for all that you do!
-Jennifer

The answer is both are equal.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001023.htm

Relationship of Age, Sex, and Ethnicity With Myopia Progression and Axial Elongation in the Correction of Myopia Evaluation Trial Leslie Hyman, PhD; Jane Gwiazda, PhD; Mohamed Hussein, PhD; Thomas T. Norton, PhD; Ying Wang, MS; Wendy Marsh-Tootle, OD; Donald Everett, MA; for the COMET Study Group <http://archopht.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/123/7/977#AUTHINFO> Arch Ophthalmol. 2005;123:977-987. ABSTRACT

Objective To identify the baseline factors independently related to 3-year myopia progression and axial elongation in COMET.

Methods A total of 469 children were enrolled, randomly assigned to progressive addition lenses with a + 2.00 diopter (D) addition or to single vision lenses and observed for 3 years. Eligible children were 6 to 11 years old, with spherical equivalent myopia of – 1.25 to – 4.50 D, bilaterally. The primary and secondary outcomes, myopia progression by cycloplegic autorefraction and axial elongation by A-scan ultrasonography, were measured annually. Multiple linear regression was used to adjust for covariates, including treatment.

Results Younger baseline age (6-7 vs 11 years, 8 vs 11 years, and 9 vs 11 years, P<.001; 10 vs 11 years, P = .04), female sex (P = .01), and each ethnic group compared with African Americans (Asian, P = .02; Hispanic, P = .002; mixed, P = .002; white, P = .001) were independently associated with faster 3-year progression. Children aged 6 to 7 years had the fastest progression of all age groups, progressing by a mean (± SD) of 1.31 D ± 0.13 more than children aged 11 years. Females progressed 0.16 D more than the males. Children of mixed, Hispanic, Asian, and white ethnicity progressed more than African American children by 0.49 D ± 0.16, 0.33 D ± 0.11, 0.32 D ± 0.13, 0.27 D ± 0.08, respectively. Age and ethnicity, but not sex, were independently associated with axial elongation. Among these myopic children, a 0.5 mm increase in axial length was associated with 1 D of myopia progression.

Conclusions Younger baseline age was the strongest factor independently associated with faster myopic progression and greater axial elongation at 3 years. African American children had less myopic progression and axial elongation than the other ethnic groups.

The references indicated below suggest that yes, there might be gender-specific effects related to myopia. However, the evidence-based medicine is based more on epidemiological evidence than any physio-logic and epidemiological studies are notoriously contradictory, especially when done on different ethical groups. Two publications I found (refs 2,3) seem to suggest that hormonal influences might play their role but that appears to be rather a hypothesis. As far as I know, more important than any published 'evidence-based data' is what your own experience says about the matter...

Best regards,
Ivan Y Torshin

1. Optom Vis Sci. 2003 Mar;80(3):226-36. Ocular component data in schoolchildren as a function of age and gender.
Zadnik K, Manny RE, Yu JA, Mitchell GL, Cotter SA, Quiralte JC, Shipp M, Friedman NE, Kleinstein RN, Walker TW, Jones LA, Moeschberger ML, Mutti DO; Collaborative Longitudinal Evaluation of Ethnicity and Refractive Error (CLEERE) Study Group.

Girls tended to have steeper corneas, stronger crystalline lenses, and shorter eyes compared with boys.

2: J Genet Psychol. 1994 Jun;155(2):219-31.Related Gender dimorphism of a visual anomaly: a deductive prediction based on an ethological model. Mackey WC, Johnson JW.

The prediction, which is based on four premises, is that deficits in distance vision (myopia) would be more prevalent in contemporaneous women than in men. Data collected in a de facto double-blind method support the prediction.

3: Optom Vis Sci. 1995 Jan;72(1):34-6. Reported myopia in opposite sex twins: a hormonal hypothesis. Miller EM.

Two studies have reported poor vision in opposite sex twins (evidenced by wearing glasses or low visual acuity, both of which are interpreted here as evidence of myopia), whereas none have reported an absence of such effects. If these reports are replicable, it would suggest a hormonal effect. There is one report of higher testosterone levels in those suffering from high myopia.

4: BMC Public Health. 2007 Dec 25;7(1):358 Morbidity at elementary school entry differs by sex and level of residence urbanization: a comparative cross-sectional study. Yang RJ, Sheu JJ, Chen HS, Lin KC, Huang HL.

Research results show that there were significant differences in the prevalence of dental caries, myopia, and obesity between different sexes and among levels of urbanization.

Boys and girls are equally near sighted. I looked under : daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/M/myopia.html. The sight contains Internet Encyclopedia of Science Anatomy & Physiology Health& Disease

It says that near sightedness affects boys and girls equally in childhood .

Girls are more nearsighted. They develop greater vitreous chamber depth.

AIMS: To assess the longitudinal changes in biometric parameters and associated factors in young myopic children aged 7--9 years followed prospectively in Singapore. METHODS: Children aged 7--9 years from three Singapore schools were invited to participate in the SCORM (Singapore Cohort study Of the Risk factors for Myopia) study. Yearly eye examinations involving biometry measures were performed in the schools. Only myopic children (n=543) with 3 year follow up data were included in this analysis. RESULTS: The 3 year increases in axial length, anterior chamber depth, lens thickness, vitreous chamber depth, and corneal curvature were 0.89 mm, -0.02 mm, -0.01 mm, 0.92 mm, and 0.01 mm, respectively. Children who were younger, female, and who had a parental history of myopia were more likely to have greater increases in axial length. After adjustment for school, age, sex, race, parental myopia and reading in books per week, the age (p<0.001), sex (p=0.012), and parental myopia (p=0.027) remained significantly associated with the 3 year change in axial length. Reading in books per week, however, was not associated with axial length change. Children with faster rates of progression of myopia had greater increases in axial length (Pearson correlation coefficient (r)=-0.69) and vitreous chamber depth (r=-0.83) CONCLUSIONS: The 3 year change in axial length of Singapore children aged 7--9 years at baseline was high and greater in younger children, females, and children with a parental history of myopia. Myopia progression was driven largely by vitreous chamber depth increase.