Abstract
Ophthalmologists, as educators and disseminators of myopia surgery, may have an impact on whether patients opt. This study aimed to explore the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of ophthalmologists regarding myopia surgery. This cross-sectional study was conducted on ophthalmologists between May and July, 2023, using a self-designed questionnaire. A total of 317 valid questionnaires were collected, with 51.42% male respondents and 38.49% aged 31-40 years old. Their mean KAP scores were 26.87 ± 3.234 (possible range: 0-26), 38.38 ± 4.679 (possible range: 0-52), and 15.99 ± 4.226 (possible range: 0-24), respectively, indicating sufficient knowledge, positive attitudes, and proactive practice. SEM further confirmed the positive associations between knowledge and attitude (β = 0.260, P = 0.001), knowledge and practice (β = 0.432, P < 0.001), and attitude and practice (β = 0.225, P < 0.001), specially, knowledge had indirect effect between attitude and practice (β = 0.115, 95%CI: 0.053,0.177, P < 0.001). Furthermore, multivariate logistic regression revealed that participants affiliated with private hospitals had higher practice scores compared to those in public tertiary hospitals (OR = 2.008, 95%CI: 1.130-3.567, P = 0.017). Ophthalmologists displayed sufficient knowledge, positive attitudes, and proactive practice to myopia surgery. Educational initiatives and behavior modifications was recommended, especially for those with lower knowledge and attitude scores.