AIM: To analyze the corneal morphological characteristics of school-age children, and provide reference for the examination of refractive errors, corneal lesions, and treatment in school-age children.

METHODS: Children aged 6-12 years in our hospital from March 2020 to June 2023 were included as the research objects, and they are divided into emmetropia group(-0.25 D≤SE≤+0.25 D)and myopia group(-6.00 D≤SE<-0.25 D)according to spherical equivalent(SE). The flat curvature(K1), steep curvature(K2), mean curvature(Km), radius of curvature(Rm), white-to-white(WTW)and corneal central thickness(CCT)were measured by Pentacam anterior segment analyzer. The corneal morphological differences between the emmetropia group and myopia group, boys and girls and children of different ages were analyzed.

RESULTS: In the emmetropia group, the anterior corneal surface Km was 42.84±0.61 D, Rm was 7.85±0.15 mm, the posterior corneal surface Km was -6.23±0.04 D, Rm was 6.77±0.15 mm, WTW was 11.89±0.28 mm, CCT was 557.77±22.44 μm; in the myopia group, Km was 43.68±0.62 D, Rm was 7.72±0.16 mm, Km was -6.49±0.03 D, Rm was 6.64±0.17 mm, WTW was 12.17±0.27 mm, CCT was 553.24±22.23 μm. There was significant difference in corneal morphology between the emmetropia group and the myopia group(both P<0.01). Correlation analysis showed that corneal morphology was significantly correlated with age and gender.

CONCLUSION: The corneal morphology of school-age children is not fixed, and the occurrence of myopia is not only related to the growth of axial length, but also significantly related to the changes of corneal morphology.