Objective The purpose of the study was to analyze the relationship between pregnant diseases and refractive errors of children aged 1–3 years old in Suzhou, Jiangsu.

Methods A total of 8364 children aged 1–3 years old who went to the community health centers in Suzhou High-tech Zone for physical examinations were included in the data analysis from January to December, 2021. Information regarding demographic factors, perinatal factors and lifestyle-related exposures were collected by per-designed questionnaires. The ophthalmic examinations including slit lamp inspection, retinopathy of prematurity screening, auto-refraction and ocular motility examination were conducted. Logistic regression models were fitted to estimate the relationship between pregnant diseases and refractive errors.

Results In this study, the total rate of refractive errors were 47.80%. The prevalence of astigmatism, anisometropia, myopia and abnormal hyperopia among 8364 Suzhou children (mean±standard deviation: 24.65±3.38 months) was 44.50%, 1.70%, 1.00% and 0.60%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, the occurrence of refractive errors was positively associated with hypertensive disorder complicating pregnancy odd ratio (OR)=2.05, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.49–2.82, thyroid disease (OR=1.50, 95%CI: 1.27–1.77) and infectious diseases (OR=2.09, 95%CI : 1.66–2.63) (all P<0.05).

Conclusion The presence of refractive errors was related to the pregnant diseases of children in Suzhou.