Abstract
Background: Astigmatism is a clinically relevant disease that affects all age ranges as a widespread refractive defect. The objective of this research is to establish the prevalence of astigmatism among King Khalid University (KKU) medical students and also to detect the effect of this refractive error on the study group's academic results. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 201 students of King Khalid University, in Abha city. The participants chosen were students from all levels of the medical faculty, except those in the preparatory process. Each individual was asked to complete a questionnaire consisting of demographic features, education level, history of past refractive errors, family history of astigmatism, academic achievement problems and final GPA. Results: Astigmatism was observed in 78 students (45.8 percent) out of a total 201 students. There was a strong link between the past history of astigmatism parents and the occurrence of astigmatism (p= 0.001). The level of astigmatism in students with a history of astigmatism was higher. Conclusion: Among almost half of the included students, astigmatism was documented, particularly those with a positive family background of astigmatism and those who had impaired visual acuity for both far and close objects themselves. Students with astigmatism showed difficulties completing graphbased assessments or using microscopes, but there was no impact on the students' final GPA.