AIM: To investigate the diagnostic value of the axial length/corneal radius of curvature(AL/CR)for myopia in children and adolescents.

METHODS: PubMed, Embase, The Cochrane Library, CNKI, CBM, WanFang Data and VIP databases were searched to collect clinical research on the value of AL/CR in diagnosing myopia in children and adolescents, and the retrieval time was from establishment to September 30, 2023. The QUADAS-2 tool was used to evaluate the quality of the extracted literature. A random-effects model was used to pool diagnostic test data, Meta-regression and subgroup analysis were performed to explore sources of heterogeneity.

RESULTS: A total of 10 articles involving 19 872 study participants were included, and Meta-analysis showed that the pooled sensitivity of the AL/CR for the diagnosis of myopia in children and adolescents was 0.91\〖95%CI(0.90-0.91)\〗, the pooled specificity was 0.84 \〖95%CI(0.84-0.85)\〗, and area under the SROC curve of 0.95 \〖95%CI(0.93-0.96)\〗.

CONCLUSION: The AL/CR is a good indicator of myopia in children and adolescents.