What is myopia and why is it concerning
Myopia is blurry long-distance vision, often called "near-sightedness." Most myopia is caused by the eye length growing too quickly in childhood. Once a child becomes myopic, their vision typically deteriorates every 6-12 months, requiring a stronger prescription.
Most myopic children tend to stabilize by the late teens and early 20’s. Excessive eye growth raises concern because even small amounts of stretching can lead to increased likelihood of vision threatening eye diseases in later life, such as myopic macular degeneration (maculopathy), retinal detachment, glaucoma and cataracts.
how is myopia treated
Standard, single-focus long distance spectacles or
contact lenses do not slow down the progression of
childhood myopia. They will allow the patient to see
clearly for a period of time, but then myopia will get worse
and new lenses with a more powerful prescription are
needed. Similarly, if a child is under-corrected, or not
corrected at all, vision will be blurry and myopia has been
shown to worsen. Instead, speciality glasses, specialty
contact lenses and eye drops called atropine have been
proven to slow myopia progression in children.
Experts agree that myopia management should be
commenced for all children under age 12 and typically
continue into the late teens.
It is important to note that no treatment can promise
the ability to stop myopia progression entirely in
children, only to slow it down.
Why manage myopia in children
Myopia progresses fastest in younger children, especially those under age 10. This means that the most important opportunity to slow eye growth is when children are younger. Myopia management aims to apply specific treatments to slow the excessive eye growth to a lesser rate. The short-term benefit of slowing myopia progression is that a child’s prescription will change less quickly, giving them clearer vision for longer between eye examinations. The long-term benefit is reducing the lifetime risk of eye disease and vision impairment.
our programs
Early Myopia Management Program
Early Myopia Management Program
Early Myopia Management Program
This program works for patients that may not be ready for contact lens wear and/or for kids who aren’t especially myopic but whose eye growth
pattern suggests that myopia is in their near future. We prescribe this drop through a compounding pharmacy. Payments are made directly to the pharmacy and drops are delivered to you. Once your child has begun using the drops, we see them in 1 month for a follow up, and typically will see them back in 4 months and 8 months (or more or less depending on stability) to monitor for any changes.
Myopia Management Plus Program
Early Myopia Management Program
Early Myopia Management Program
With our higher tier program, we determine the best line of treatment (orthokeratology, specialty soft contact lenses, and/or atropine drops) that will suit your child and their lifestyle. The program includes however many contact lenses are required to get your child through 1 year of
treatment, free shipping of contact lenses, exchanges and returns for power changes, all visits related to myopia, & careful tracking of your child's myopia progression. Follow-ups will vary, but for a new contact lens wearer, typically are 1 week, 4 months, and 8 months (and more often for a new orthokeratology fitting). If we need to switch to another line of treatment, these changes are included in the global fee.