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Current Research on Myopia

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Current Research on Myopia

Here you'll find information to help you understand myopia, its causes and treatment options. To discuss myopia management, contact Insight Vision Optometry at (714) 486-3315 or use our online form.
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Background About Myopia

  • • A landmark study published in 2015 by the National Institutes of Health confirmed a startling increase in myopia among American children.
  • • This journal offers an in-depth look at myopia and its increasing prevalence among children around the world. The article examines the role that genetics, ethnicity, outdoor time and screen time have on children's vision.
  • • Researchers believe spending more time outdoors may reduce a child's risk of developing myopia. This is especially important if your family has a history of shortsightedness. To learn more about the effects of outdoor time on myopia in children, refer to this article from the American Academy of Ophthalmology.
  • • In 2019, a Vision Report released by the World Health Organization named the global rise in myopia as a major public health issue that requires more resources.

Eye Health Risks Related to Myopia

  • • Eye diseases linked to high myopia include glaucoma, retinal disease and cataracts, according to the National Institutes of Health.
  • • The biggest eye health threat linked to myopia is retinal disease. An NIH abstract summarized multiple clinical studies and concluded the threats of vision impairment and blindness will continue to increase significantly without an effort to stop the development and progression of myopia.
  • • To help you understand the risk for your child, this chart produced by Review of Myopia Management demonstrates the risk of developing serious eye diseases at different levels of myopia.

Myopia Treatments

  • • Many treatments have been effective at slowing or even stopping myopia from worsening in children. This article for parents offers a helpful overview of myopia management and recommendations.
  • • This report from the American Academy of Ophthalmology reviews results from using prescription eye drops for myopia treatment, which could be a good option for children who are young or whose myopia is progressing quickly.
  • • Overnight contact lenses have been used very successfully to slow myopia progression in children, as demonstrated by this large study. With this treatment method, children can see clearly all day without the need for contacts or glasses.
  • • Additional insight from the American Optometric Association supports the effective treatment of myopia in children with multifocal soft contact lenses.
Doctor examining child's eyes
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Education And
Fellowship

Doctor of Optometry Magna Cum Laude at University of California, San Diego. Born in the south, raised in California and pursued her education where it just felt right, Southern California College of Optometry. Being named after The Little Mermaid, she spent her undergraduate years at UCSD, studying under King Triton.

Clinical Studies on Myopia Treatment

  • • This article from the International Myopia Institute discusses clinical studies used to evaluate treatments for myopia. One important finding from this examination is the importance of measuring eyeball length (axial length) when treating a child for myopia. Insight Vision Optometry has the advanced equipment needed to painlessly and quickly measure eye length.
  • • The effectiveness of using prescription eye drops to treat pediatric myopia is covered in the ATOM2 study.
  • • A long-term study of the efficacy of overnight contact lenses for myopia treatment followed children for up to 12 years. The study found that this method was "effective in slowing myopia progression … and demonstrated a clinically acceptable safety profile."
  • • This abstract summarizes the results of a three-year trial that demonstrated that multifocal soft contact lenses efficiently slow myopia progression in children over multiple years.

How is axial length change related to ethnicity?

The table below shows the percentiles of axial elongation European and Chinese children reported by Diez PS et al and Tideman JW et al.5,6 This shows that children of Chinese descent have longer axial lengths than those of European descent.

Percentile Female Male
European Chinese European Chinese
6 years 25 21.66 22.03 22.14 22.55
50 22.06 22.54 22.59 22.99
75 22.49 23.04 23.01 23.50
9 years 25 22.33 23.16 22.83 23.70
50 22.79 23.72 23.31 24.32
75 23.25 24.31 23.79 24.89
15 years 25 22.68 23.83 23.17 24.39
50 23.15 24.37 23.65 25.01
75 23.65 25.20 24.21 25.80

Additional Research Studies

Orthokeratology and Glaucoma

I hear you might be hearing conflicting evidence from different doctors. One doctor might recommend orthokeratology or atropine to treat your children's myopia from getting worse. Another doctor discourages it and cites that it may lead to increased eye pressure which can lead to an increased risk of glaucoma!

Who to believe? It is certainly a conundrum for you as a diligent parent. Know that with our practice and Treehouse Eyes, we treat children's vision very seriously and base all our treatments based on clinical evidence and not just our opinion.

There is currently no research that we have found that wearing orthokeratology lenses increases eye pressure or glaucoma.

Below are just a few studies that demonstrate just that.

In fact, you can make the argument to no treatment with progressive myopia would increase the risk of glaucoma.

Study after study after study demonstrates that orthokeratology safely and effectively reduces myopia progression in young children.