Managing Myopia

Myopia, or short sightedness is a common eye condition caused by the eyeball growing slightly too long. When the eyeball is too large light is focused in front of the retina, rather than behind, making distant objects appearing blurred.

Family history has always been a risk factor for myopia, with a 50% possibility of your child developing myopia if both parents have it. Environmental factors such as near work activities such as reading, computer use and video games and spending less time outdoors are thought to also be possible causes of the increase in myopia.

Around the world a myopia epidemic is developing. In 2000 1.4 billion people were myopic, this is predicted to increase to 4 billion by 2050! The most worrying consequence of an increasing population of myopic patients, is the risk of eye conditions relating to being short-sighted, such as glaucoma.

Until recently there hasn’t been a product available specifically designed for managing the progression of myopia. A few methods have been used and tested such as prescribing progressive lenses such as bifocals or varifocals and using contact lenses that change the shape of the eyeball, but nothing specifically proven to reduce myopia progression.

A couple of years ago, contact lens company Coopervision launched the MiSight daily disposable contact lenses designed to help slow the progression of Myopia. This soft contact lens has a special design that helps to slow the progression of myopia by tricking the eye into thinking it is already too big using multifocal rings throughout the lens to create myopic defocus. By using this method of defocus, it slows down the growth of the eyeball and reducing the progression of myopia. As a daily disposable lens, it is easy for children to use and adapt to without the need for cleaning and solutions.

The newest, and most exciting myopia management product has only recently been released after years of research and trials. Finally, there is a spectacle lens available that has been specifically designed to target and slow myopia! The MiYOSMART lens is similar to the contact lens in that it is designed to created myopic defocus, it uses lots of very small lenses spaced 1mm apart that create a peripheral retinal defocus. After a 2-year clinical trial, patients who wore the lenses for this period saw a reduction of myopia progression by an average of 60%! Although it contains all these small lenses, the MiYOSMART has been designed to cosmetically look like a standard single vision lens, made from polycarbonate to withstand the daily activities of children.

The combination of lenses provides a solution that enables us to prescribe a visual correction to be worn all day either with contact lenses or spectacles that provide long term outcomes, great vision, and flexibility across all daily activities for the wearer!

For any more information about myopia or myopia management products contact us today and speak to a member of our team.