AIM:To investigate the myopia of junior high school students in Enshi, Hubei province with different selenium content, and analyze the correlation between the level of serum selenium, hair selenium and myopia.

METHODS:A cross-sectional study. A total of 600 students from grades 1-3 of junior high schools(100 students in each grade)in selenium-rich(selenium in soil ≥1.28mg/kg)and selenium-deficient(selenium in soil <1.28mg/kg)areas were randomly selected from September 2020 to September 2021, respectively. The level of serum selenium, hair selenium, glutathione peroxidase(GSH-Px)and myopia condition were determined.

RESULTS:The serum and hair selenium of myopic group(n=244, 40.7%)were 75.14±11.16μg/L and 0.51±0.01μg/g, respectively. Those in the non-myopic group(n=356, 59.3%)were 110.24±12.14μg/L and 0.68±0.02 μg/g, respectively. The serum selenium and hair selenium in the two groups were different(all P<0.01). The serum selenium of 300 students in the selenium-deficient area was 76.74±11.25μg/L, the hair selenium was 0.45±0.01 μg/g, and the number of myopia cases was 154(51.3%); The serum selenium of 300 students in selenium-rich areas was 102.31±10.26 μg/L, the hair selenium was 0.71±0.02 μg/g, and the number of myopia cases was 90(30.0%), the serum and hair selenium in the selenium-rich areas were significantly higher than those compared with the students in selenium-deficient areas, and the myopic incidence was significantly reduced(all P<0.01). The level of GSH-Px of the two areas was 114.65±12.12U/L vs 75.34±13.20U/L(Z=37.994, P<0.01). There is a negative correlation between serum and hair selenium and the myopic incidence(r=-0.542, -0.621, P<0.05).

CONCLUSION:Serum and hair selenium is significantly associated with myopia of junior high school students in Enshi, which may provide new ideas for the clinical prevention and treatment of myopia.