What is Myopia?
Myopia, or short-sightedness, occurs when light entering the eye is focused in front of the retina rather than directly on the retina. This causes blurred distance vision. The more myopia you have, the closer you have to be to see an object clearly.
You are more likely to be myopic if you have at least one myopic parent however up tp 60% of patients with high myopia do not have a family history of the condition.
Myopia progresses most rapidly in the early stages, so starting treatment as early as possible will give the best opportunity for a positive outcome. In the majority of cases myopia progression will naturally stop in their mid-twenties.
Myopia Control
Good vision is essential for a child’s learning and development. As a child grows, their vision goes through key developmental phases that are deeply integrated with their overall development. Since 80% of classroom learning is visual, early detection of myopia is critically important, especially in children with a strong family history of the condition.
The earlier a child develops myopia, the faster it will progress. For instance, a 7-year-old with -1.00D myopia is likely to reach -6.00D by the age of 16. Each additional diopter of myopia after reaching -6.00D (high myopia) is associated with an increased risk of certain ocular conditions and visual impairments later in life. Over the last 25 years at our practice, we have treated 20 patients with retinal detachments, 18 of whom had high myopia.
Thankfully, high myopia can become a problem of the past. Today, we can prescribe special myopia control spectacles and contact lenses. These corrections bend the image focused on the retina, preventing the eyeball from elongating—see image below. By using these modalities, myopia progression can be slowed by up to 67%. We have been using these myopia control spectacles and contact lenses for a few years and can confirm that the slowdown of myopia progression often reaches or exceeds this percentage.
Additionally, we offer Atropine therapy, where one drop of Atropine is applied to the eye at night. This treatment can also slow the rate of myopia progression by up to 35%. Atropine therapy can be used in conjunction with myopia control spectacles and contact lenses for tighter control of myopia progression.
Schedule a consultation appointment with us: 09 837 0657
