Taking action today could save your child’s vision tomorrow
As a parent, you would do nearly anything to safeguard your child’s future. If your child is nearsighted, you make sure they have glasses so they can see things far away. But what if you could protect their vision and ocular health into adulthood?
Optical Eyeworks offers myopia control, which can prevent the need for heavy prescriptions and the development of potentially serious eye conditions later in your child’s life.
Request an appointment today with an optometrist to find out if myopia control is right for your child.
What is myopia?
Myopia, also known as nearsightedness, is a refractive error that allows kids to see objects up close without a problem but prevents them from seeing far off objects clearly.
In a non-myopic eye, the cornea refracts light to focus directly on the retina—the tissue lining the back of the eye. On the other hand, kids with myopia typically have longer eyeballs, which causes light to focus in front of the retina rather than directly on it.
As kids grow, their eyes grow with them, getting longer and longer, making their refractive error worse.
There is no definitive answer for what causes myopia, although evidence suggests there’s a genetic element as well as an environmental element. For instance, children who spend more time playing outside are less likely to develop myopia.
What is myopia control?
Myopia control is a process designed to correct a child’s nearsightedness in their day-to-day life while also slowing down or stopping the growth of their eye. By preventing the eye from getting significantly longer, we can avoid the need for a significantly stronger prescription in adulthood and reduce the risk of developing certain eye conditions.
The risks of leaving myopia unmanaged
Letting your child’s myopia progress unchecked makes them more likely to develop high myopia or severe myopia.
High myopia increases the risk of several ocular conditions, including:
Our methods of myopia control
Atropine is a medication delivered through eye drops that help relax the focusing mechanism of the eye. There are a few theories as to why this works, but doctors suspect it has to do with alleviating eye strain.
Miyosmart and Myovision are products produced by 2 different brands using the same principle: shifting the focus of peripheral vision. These spectacle lenses offer clear central vision while blurring peripheral vision, which essentially tells the eyes that it’s time to stop growing.
These 2 brands use different designs to accomplish a similar effect. Your optometrist will determine which brand is right for your child.
MiSight lenses are single-use daily disposable contacts that are specifically designed for kids. Because they’re only meant to be worn for a single day, MiSight contacts are less likely to cause infections due to improper hygiene or storage. These contacts also use the principle of peripheral defocus to slow or stop myopia progression.
