Myopia Management

Myopia

Myopia is often referred to short-sightedness.

When people are short-sighted, they can see near objects well, but have difficulty focusing on distant objects. This vision problem occurs when light rays entering the eye focus in front of the retina, rather than directly on it.

If you are short-sighted, you typically have difficulty reading road signs and seeing distance objects clearly. Signs and symptoms of myopia include squinting, eyestrain and headaches. Myopes need glasses for many everyday activities, such as driving, watching television or sports. Spectacles or contact lenses of the correct power changes the path of the incoming light so that it focuses directly on the retina, as it would in normal eyes.

Research has shown that the prevalence of myopia in the western world has increased from 20% to 40% in the past 25 years. In many Asian countries the prevalence is as high as 90%. It is estimated that half the world’s population will be myopic by 2050.

Myopia usually begins in childhood and is more common in children who have a myopic parent, although sometimes there is no family history. Other influencing factors include ethnicity, environment and spending increasing amounts of time doing near tasks, including using smart phones, tablets and computers.

What are the risks of myopia?

When the eye grows too long the vision becomes out of focus and things in the distance become blurry.

However there’s more to myopia than blurred vision. Unfortunately it ultimately increases the likelihood of developing serious eye conditions such as retinal detachment, myopic maculopathy, cataracts and glaucoma. So there are many health benefits to slowing the onset earlier.

We expect that our children will live longer than us and we need to do all we can to preserve their vision!

Is my child at risk?

A web questionnaire is available for free at myopiacare.org which uses an algorithm taking into account age, current glasses prescription, family history and other factors to assess the risk of progressive myopia.

How can we reduce the chances of myopia?

A key part of any myopia management is to encourage children to spend more time outdoors - ideally 12 hours per week. Studies have shown that by increasing outdoor time in this way helps to prevent myopia onset and development.

Contact Lenses

MiSight® 1 day lenses are soft daily disposable contact lenses for children that not only correct vision, but potentially help slow the progression of myopia.

Daily disposable contact lenses are simple, convenient and a great option for children. MiSight® 1 day contact lenses correct vision just like normal lenses but feature ActivControl® technology. ActivControl® technology creates myopic defocus to control axial elongation (elongating of the eyeball).

Slowing the speed at which the eyes grow longer helps to slow the progression of myopia. The results of a three year study showed that MiSight® 1 day reduces the rate of myopia progression by 59% over that period.

Attached are links to the MiSight website: 

But what’s the difference between MiSight® 1 day and normal contact lenses for children?

• Slows myopia progression – MiSight® 1 day uses patented technology to slow the progression of Myopia and reduce the likelihood of contracting vision-threatening conditions in the future.

• Active lifestyle – contact lenses are an optimal solution for children who enjoy sports or outdoor activities and don’t want to worry about breaking or losing their glasses.

• Peripheral vision – contact lenses provide a much wider field of vision than spectacles – again, great for sports or just running around in the playground.

Are contact lenses safe for children?

Many parents express concerns about their children wearing contact lenses and more specifically, around the process of putting them in and taking them out.  However, children who wear contact lenses report higher satisfaction levels with contact lenses than with spectacles, and our young patients can mostly manage their own lens wear independently.

If you are interested to discuss further, then please do get in touch.