The impact of refractive errors on vision-related quality of life and medical students' awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods

Othman Jarallah Al Jarallah; Mohammed Saad M. AlFehaid; Amjad Fiusal H. Alharthe; Muath Mohammed A. Alhaqbani; Shouq Bader S. Alotaibi; Hussam A. Almalki; Norah Ibrahim G. Alkhashan; Abdulrahman Hamad A. Alsubaie; Abdulaziz Mesfer Alnemari; Ghadah Mohammed Almutairi

doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

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Original Article
Online Published: 18 Dec 2025

IJMDC. 2025; 9(12): 3072-3082

doi: 10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods

Othman Jarallah Al Jarallah, Mohammed Saad M. Alfehaid, Amjad Fiusal H. Alharthe, Muath Mohammed A. Alhaqbani, Shouq Bader S. Alotaibi, Hussam A. Almalki, Norah Ibrahim G. Alkhashan, Abdulrahman Hamad A. Alsubaie, Abdulaziz Mesfer Alnemari, Ghadah Mohammed Almutairi.

Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to assess the impact of refractive errors on vision-related quality of life among medical students and to evaluate their awareness, attitudes, and preferences toward refractive surgery and other correction methods.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional design, in which Saudi medical students were surveyed from randomly selected colleges via an online Arabic questionnaire covering demographics, refractive error history, corrective method comfort, attitudes, and National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire-25 (NEI-VFQ-25).
Results: Among 417 medical students, females (n=205, 49.2%) and males (n=212, 50.8%) were nearly equal; most were 20–24 years (n=227, 54.4%) and preclinical (n=208, 49.9%). Refractive errors were reported by 203 (48.7%), mainly nearsightedness (n=100, 24.0%). Eyeglasses were used by 138 (33.1%), with 127 (30.5%) comfortable, whereas 57 (13.7%) found contact lenses uncomfortable. Awareness of corrective surgeries was noted in 266 (63.8%) of students. Key NEI-VFQ-25 findings included an overall score of 66.03, the highest scores in color vision (89.07) and peripheral vision (86.61), and the lowest in role difficulties (33.90) and dependency (38.11). Importantly, non-refractive error students had better social functioning (85.36 vs. 80.70, p≤0.05) and lower dependency (35.28 vs. 41.09, p≤0.05). Awareness was significantly higher among females, 20- to 24-year-olds, clinical students, and those with refractive errors (all p<0.001).
Conclusion: This study showed that nearly half of medical students experienced refractive errors. Students without refractive errors reported better social functioning and lower dependency. Awareness was higher among females, clinical students, and those with refractive errors, highlighting a need for targeted educational interventions.

Key words: Refractive errors, vision-related quality of life, medical students, refractive surgery, Saudi Arabia.

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Pubmed Style

Jarallah OJA, Alfehaid MSM, Alharthe AFH, Alhaqbani MMA, Alotaibi SBS, Almalki HA, Alkhashan NIG, Alsubaie AHA, Alnemari AM, Almutairi GM. The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods. IJMDC. 2025; 9(12): 3072-3082. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

Web Style

Jarallah OJA, Alfehaid MSM, Alharthe AFH, Alhaqbani MMA, Alotaibi SBS, Almalki HA, Alkhashan NIG, Alsubaie AHA, Alnemari AM, Almutairi GM. The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods. https://www.ijmdc.com/?mno=291863 [Access: January 16, 2026]. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

AMA (American Medical Association) Style

Jarallah OJA, Alfehaid MSM, Alharthe AFH, Alhaqbani MMA, Alotaibi SBS, Almalki HA, Alkhashan NIG, Alsubaie AHA, Alnemari AM, Almutairi GM. The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods. IJMDC. 2025; 9(12): 3072-3082. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

Vancouver/ICMJE Style

Jarallah OJA, Alfehaid MSM, Alharthe AFH, Alhaqbani MMA, Alotaibi SBS, Almalki HA, Alkhashan NIG, Alsubaie AHA, Alnemari AM, Almutairi GM. The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods. IJMDC. (2025), [cited January 16, 2026]; 9(12): 3072-3082. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

Harvard Style

Jarallah, O. J. A., Alfehaid, . M. S. M., Alharthe, . A. F. H., Alhaqbani, . M. M. A., Alotaibi, . S. B. S., Almalki, . H. A., Alkhashan, . N. I. G., Alsubaie, . A. H. A., Alnemari, . A. M. & Almutairi, . G. M. (2025) The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods. IJMDC, 9 (12), 3072-3082. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

Turabian Style

Jarallah, Othman Jarallah Al, Mohammed Saad M. Alfehaid, Amjad Fiusal H. Alharthe, Muath Mohammed A. Alhaqbani, Shouq Bader S. Alotaibi, Hussam A. Almalki, Norah Ibrahim G. Alkhashan, Abdulrahman Hamad A. Alsubaie, Abdulaziz Mesfer Alnemari, and Ghadah Mohammed Almutairi. 2025. The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods. International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries, 9 (12), 3072-3082. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

Chicago Style

Jarallah, Othman Jarallah Al, Mohammed Saad M. Alfehaid, Amjad Fiusal H. Alharthe, Muath Mohammed A. Alhaqbani, Shouq Bader S. Alotaibi, Hussam A. Almalki, Norah Ibrahim G. Alkhashan, Abdulrahman Hamad A. Alsubaie, Abdulaziz Mesfer Alnemari, and Ghadah Mohammed Almutairi. "The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods." International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries 9 (2025), 3072-3082. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

MLA (The Modern Language Association) Style

Jarallah, Othman Jarallah Al, Mohammed Saad M. Alfehaid, Amjad Fiusal H. Alharthe, Muath Mohammed A. Alhaqbani, Shouq Bader S. Alotaibi, Hussam A. Almalki, Norah Ibrahim G. Alkhashan, Abdulrahman Hamad A. Alsubaie, Abdulaziz Mesfer Alnemari, and Ghadah Mohammed Almutairi. "The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods." International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries 9.12 (2025), 3072-3082. Print. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

Jarallah, O. J. A., Alfehaid, . M. S. M., Alharthe, . A. F. H., Alhaqbani, . M. M. A., Alotaibi, . S. B. S., Almalki, . H. A., Alkhashan, . N. I. G., Alsubaie, . A. H. A., Alnemari, . A. M. & Almutairi, . G. M. (2025) The impact of refractive errors on visionrelated quality of life and medical students’ awareness, attitudes, and preferences towards refractive surgery and other correction methods. International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries, 9 (12), 3072-3082. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1761061118

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