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Review
. 2022 Nov;11(11):6668-6677.
doi: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1339_22. Epub 2022 Dec 16.

Efficacy of atropine for myopia control in children: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Shalini Kumari  1 , Raj Anand  2 , Shashank Tripathi  3 , Rajesh C Mishra  4 , Simant Kumar Jha  5
Affiliations
Review

Efficacy of atropine for myopia control in children: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Shalini Kumari et al. J Family Med Prim Care. 2022 Nov.

Abstract

Objective: To conduct a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the effects of atropine eye drop in slowing myopia progression.

Methods: A systematic search of relevant articles was done through a computerized search on PubMed, Medline, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar on June 16, 2022. A supplementary search was done on ClinicalTrials.gov on the same date. After thorough search and analysis, seven relevant RCTs, double-masked with atropine eye drop as intervention arm and placebo as control arm, were selected for meta-analysis. Jadad scoring was used to evaluate the quality of RCTs. The outcome measurements included in the present meta-analysis are mean changes in the spherical equivalent (SE) of myopic error, and mean changes in axial length (AL) during the study period.

Result: Pooled summary effect size, calculated by random effect model, for SE of myopia progression was 1.08 with 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.31-1.86) which was statistically significant (P-value = 0.006). Pooled summary effect size, calculated by random effect model, for axial length was - 0.89 with 95% CI (-1.48 to - 0.30) which was statistically significant (P-value = 0.003).

Conclusion: In summary, atropine was demonstrated to be effective in controlling myopia progression in children. Both outcome measures, mean SE changes and mean AL elongation responded to atropine intervention compared to placebo.

Keywords: Atropine; children; myopia; progression; refractive error; vision.

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Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA flowchart showcasing the search strategy for meta-analysis
Figure 2
Figure 2
Forest plot showing the result of meta-analysis for indicator mean spherical equivalent of myopia progression
Figure 3
Figure 3
Graphic method (Funnel plot) to check the presence of publication bias
Figure 4
Figure 4
Forest plot showing the result of meta-analysis for indicator axial length elongation
Figure 5
Figure 5
Graphic method (Funnel plot) to check the presence of publication bias
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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