At Child & Family EyeCare Center we are pleased to offer 3 different programs of myopia management. Our team is trained and certified to help you and your child manage their nearsightedness.
What is Myopia?
Myopia is the official term for nearsightedness. This means that vision is blurry far away and clearer up close. This is caused by the eye being slightly elongated which, in severe cases, can lead to vision threatening conditions such as retinal detachment and myopic maculopathy. About 40% of people in the US have myopia and that number is growing rapidly. By 2050 it is estimated that half of the world’s population and over half of the US population will have myopia.
What can be done?
The majority of people that have myopia settle for a pair of glasses or contacts to help them see clearly both up close and at distance. However, for our children we can do better. There are currently three options to slow the progression of myopia in children.
Corneal Reshaping Therapy (CRT) 
Corneal Reshaping Therapy (also known as Orthokeratology) uses specially fit, rigid contact lenses that are worn while sleeping. During the night the lens gently reshapes the front surface of the eye (known as the cornea). In the morning the lens is removed and the patient experiences clear vision throughout the day without correction. The corneal reshaping that occurs while sleeping slows the progression of myopia by an average of 50% and sometimes even more. Our doctors will specially fit a lens customized to the measurements of your eyes to make this possible for you. This is a good option for people with active lifestyles that enjoy activities such as hiking or boating, and is also a good alternative to LASIK.
Multifocal Soft Contact Lenses
Multifocal contact lenses are often worn by patients rather than using reading glasses. This concept that has been redesigned and applied to myopia control. By introducing slight blur in the peripheral vision, MiSight lenses slow myopic progression by an average of 50% and sometimes even more. The MiSight daily disposable contact lens is the only FDA approved contact lens for myopia control and we are one of the few doctors in the county certified to fit and dispense these lenses.
Atropine Drops
Atropine is a drop that is sometimes used for pupil dilation. In diluted concentrations it has been shown to decrease myopia progression by about 60% per a recent study. Drops are typically instilled once per day, one drop in each eye. Side effects can include light sensitivity and blurry near vision. This can be an option for those that are not a candidate for contact lenses, or those that simply do not want to wear them.
Make an appointment today to schedule your child’s comprehensive eye exam with myopia management evaluation.
Source: Holden, B. A., Fricke, T. R., Wilson, D. A., Jong, M., Naidoo, K. S., Sankaridurg, P., Wong, T. Y., Naduvilath, T. J., & Resnikoff, S. (2016). Global Prevalence of Myopia and High Myopia and Temporal Trends from 2000 through 2050. Ophthalmology, 123(5), 1036–1042. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ophtha.2016.01.006