Myopia Management

Does your child need stronger glasses year after year, with no end in sight? Are you hoping your child did not inherit your “bad eyes”? Or are you worried about the impact of excessive screen time in children?

You are right to be concerned! We are seeing a dramatic increase in childhood myopia (near-sightedness) in recent years. Currently, 30% of the world is near-sighted. This number is expected to jump to 50% by 2050. That change is coming from our youth, as well as the heavy usage of electronics and near-demand on young adults. The good news is there are now ways to slow the progression of myopia in children and young adults.

Currently, there are three primary management options and several more on the horizon.

Preventative Measures:

• Early Detection with eye exams early in life and yearly throughout school:

• There are early signs we can detect that indicate a child is on the path of developing myopia.

• Stress-relieving glasses for near activities:

  If early myopia is detected, Dr. Shaw would prescribe lenses to be worn for all near-centered activities in order to reverse the early signs and/or prevent myopia development.
  
  If a child is at high risk of myopia development, Dr. Shaw will often recommend further follow-ups or binocular vision evaluations.

Myopia Management Treatment options​​​​​​​:

• MiSight daily disposable contact lenses

• The only FDA-approved contacts for myopia control

• Ortho-Keratology, aka “night lenses”
  Specialized hard gas-permeable contact lenses that patients sleep in to temporarily flatten the cornea overnight and correct myopia during the day.

• Low-dose atropine eye drops
  ​​​​​​​Typically used as a last resort in our office as it requires daily instillation of dilating eye drops, but is a proven myopia management treatment option discussed with patients
  ​​​​​​​

At East Avenue Vision Center, we designed a myopia management program to carefully determine the best solution for your individual child. We will walk you through the entire process from environmental modifications to selecting an appropriate myopia control strategy with either contact lenses, eye drops, or both. We take the time to get to know your child and your family to ensure the experience is both positive and successful!

Dr. Shaw is passionate about providing your child with solutions that didn’t exist when she was growing up. Dr. Shaw is nearsighted and she understands the burden that thick glasses can have on a child’s self-esteem as well as the lifelong risk of eye conditions like retinal detachment, glaucoma, and macular degeneration that go along with excessive myopia.

Your child’s eyes can’t wait -- schedule a myopia management consultation today!!