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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0PeerJ

Ocular biometric characteristics in young Saudi adults across varying degrees of myopia

  • Saif Hassan Alrasheed1
  • Azzam Abdulaziz Alharbi1
  • Naveen Kumar Challa1
  • Saleh Alshammeri1
  • Abdelaziz Mohamed Elmadina1
  • Bandar M. Alenezi1
  • Fahad Almoqbel2
  • Majid A. Moafa1
  1. 1Department of Optometry, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Qassim University, Buraydah, Qassim, Saudi Arabia
  2. 2Department of Optometry, College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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Abstract

Background: High myopia significantly increases the risk of serious ocular complications. The purpose of this study was to characterize ocular biometric variations across different degrees of myopia in young Saudi adults and to identify biometric parameters most strongly influenced by refractive severity.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 163 eyes from individuals aged 18–31 years with myopia ranging from −1.00 to −11.00 D were evaluated at the university medical clinics. Anterior segment parameters such as white-to-white (WTW) corneal diameter, anterior chamber depth (ACD), anterior chamber volume (ACV), anterior chamber angle (ACA), and central corneal thickness (CCT) were measured using the Pentacam, axial length (AXL) was assessed with the IOL Master. Intraocular pressure (IOP) was measured with a non-contact tonometer. Finally, AXL, anterior chamber parameters, WTW, CCT and IOP were compared among the low, moderate, and high myopic groups.

Results: Myopia severity showed a statistically significant positive correlation with AXL, WTW corneal diameter, ACD, ACV, CCT, and IOP ( p < 0.05). AXL demonstrated a strong, statistically significant positive correlation with spherical equivalent (r = 0.70, p < 0.01). In contrast, ACA remained relatively stable across myopia groups. Multivariate analysis of covariance revealed that myopia severity significantly influenced AXL (F(2,156) = 8.52, p < 0.01), WTW corneal diameter (F(2,156) = 5.22, p < 0.01), ACV (F(2,156) = 7.94, p < 0.01), CCT (F(2,156) = 15.84, p < 0.01), and IOP (F(2,156) = 12.83, p < 0.01) after adjusting for age and gender. ACD showed modest increases across myopia groups with a borderline non-significant association after adjustment (F(2,156) = 2.93, p = 0.06), whereas ACA remained relatively stable and was not significantly affected by myopia severity (F(2,156) = 0.62, p = 0.54).

Conclusion: Myopia severity in young adults is associated with significant structural changes, primarily AXL elongation and only minimal enlargement of anterior segment dimensions particularly the ACD and ACA, suggesting that posterior expansion predominates over anterior. These biometric patterns have important implications for refractive surgery planning, glaucoma risk assessment, and monitoring of myopia progression.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{alrasheed2026ocular,
  title = {{Ocular biometric characteristics in young Saudi adults across varying degrees of myopia}},
  author = {Saif Hassan Alrasheed and Azzam Abdulaziz Alharbi and Naveen Kumar Challa and Saleh Alshammeri and Abdelaziz Mohamed Elmadina and Bandar M. Alenezi and Fahad Almoqbel and Majid A. Moafa},
  journal = {PeerJ},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.7717/peerj.21767},
  url = {https://peerj.com/articles/21767},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Ocular biometric characteristics in young Saudi adults across varying degrees of myopia
AU  - Saif Hassan Alrasheed
AU  - Azzam Abdulaziz Alharbi
AU  - Naveen Kumar Challa
AU  - Saleh Alshammeri
AU  - Abdelaziz Mohamed Elmadina
AU  - Bandar M. Alenezi
AU  - Fahad Almoqbel
AU  - Majid A. Moafa
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/01
JO  - PeerJ
DO  - 10.7717/peerj.21767
UR  - https://peerj.com/articles/21767
AB  - Background: High myopia significantly increases the risk of serious ocular complications. The purpose of this study was to characterize ocular biometric variations across different degrees of myopia in young Saudi adults and to identify biometric parameters most strongly influenced by refractive severity.  Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 163 eyes from individuals aged 18–31 years with myopia ranging from −1.00 to −11.00 D were evaluated at the university medical clinics. Anterior segment parameters such as white-to-white (WTW) corneal diameter, anterior chamber depth (ACD), anterior chamber volume (ACV), anterior chamber angle (ACA), and central corneal thickness (CCT) were measured using the Pentacam, axial length (AXL) was assessed with the IOL Master. Intraocular pressure (IOP) was measured with a non-contact tonometer. Finally, AXL, anterior chamber parameters, WTW, CCT and IOP were compared among the low, moderate, and high myopic groups.  Results: Myopia severity showed a statistically significant positive correlation with AXL, WTW corneal diameter, ACD, ACV, CCT, and IOP ( p < 0.05). AXL demonstrated a strong, statistically significant positive correlation with spherical equivalent (r = 0.70, p < 0.01). In contrast, ACA remained relatively stable across myopia groups. Multivariate analysis of covariance revealed that myopia severity significantly influenced AXL (F(2,156) = 8.52, p < 0.01), WTW corneal diameter (F(2,156) = 5.22, p < 0.01), ACV (F(2,156) = 7.94, p < 0.01), CCT (F(2,156) = 15.84, p < 0.01), and IOP (F(2,156) = 12.83, p < 0.01) after adjusting for age and gender. ACD showed modest increases across myopia groups with a borderline non-significant association after adjustment (F(2,156) = 2.93, p = 0.06), whereas ACA remained relatively stable and was not significantly affected by myopia severity (F(2,156) = 0.62, p = 0.54).  Conclusion: Myopia severity in young adults is associated with significant structural changes, primarily AXL elongation and only minimal enlargement of anterior segment dimensions particularly the ACD and ACA, suggesting that posterior expansion predominates over anterior. These biometric patterns have important implications for refractive surgery planning, glaucoma risk assessment, and monitoring of myopia progression.
SN  - 2167-8359
ER  -