Belén Sánchez Cañal
Ophthalmologist at the Fernández-Vega Ophthalmological Institute in Oviedo.
This is a very interesting study from a scientific point of view, published in a journal with a moderate impact factor. The article presents the identification of 5 genetic variants (GJD2, RBFOX1, LAMA2, KCNQ5 and LRRC4C) that interact with educational level, giving patients with myopia a high susceptibility to develop myopia. For all 5 variants, university level education was associated with a greater effect of the risk allele.
It is of vital importance to understand the genetics of myopia, given the importance of severe ocular pathology in high myopes, such as glaucoma, rhegmatogenous retinal detachment or myopic maculopathy, which cause significant ocular comorbidity.
This study confirms the interaction between genetics and environmental factors as a propensity for the development of myopia in certain populations. It is important to know these genetic variants and then extrapolate the data to other populations, such as the Spanish population, in order to carry out interventions and be able to slow the progression of myopia in susceptible individuals.