COMPARISON OF CYCLOPLEGIC AND MANIFEST REFRACTION OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS IN CAMPINAS, BRAZIL

Purpose : To determinate a relation between the manifest refractive error and the cyclopegic refractive error of children and adolescents in Campinas - SP, Brazil and to compare our results with previous studies. Methods : Dynamic retinoscopy and Static retinoscopy were perfomed on every school student from a visual screening. For the cyclopegia, three drops of cyclopentolate 1% was instilled into each eye. Maximum cyclopegia in this study was achieved after 45 minutes. The working distance for retinoscopy was 67 cm. During retinoscopy, the room was dimly iluminated and the students were asked to look at a spot of light  at a distance of 6 m. Retinoscopy findings measured before and after cyclopegia: total number of eyes, spherical equivalent, latent error. Results : The manifest and the cyclopegic refraction of the two hundred and twenty two eyes (222) of one hundred and eleven children (111) and adolescents were analyzed. The average age of the participants was 10 years (4–15 years).  The subjects were divided into five groups (A, B, C, D, E). According to their spherical equivalent under cyclopegia and the latent error was calculated and also divided into the five groups as shown in tables 1 and 2. Conclusion : Our study agree with previous studies. The value of the latent error increases with hyperopia. In patients of over 2 diopters of hyperopia the difference between cyclopegic and non-cyclopegic refraction  is about 1.50 diopters. The value decreases gradually in patients with low hyperopia and myopia.