Myopia Management

Myopia Management

Our myopia management patient completing insertion
and removal trianing for contact lenses

The Myopia Management program allows Dr. Michael Cook to stop / slow down the progression of nearsightedness.

Treatment Options:

  • Ortho-K
  • Atropine
  • Soft multifocal contact lenses
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What is Myopia?

Myopia (nearsightedness, where distance vision is blurry without glasses) occurs when a child's eyes become too long (from the front of the eye to the back). Myopia is occuring at an accelerating frequency due to lack of time spent outside, increased visual work at near (books, phones, computers) and other factors. While standard glasses and contact lenses restore clear distance vision, they do not reduce the rate of myopic deterioration, in fact, they may accelerate it.

Dangers of Myopia

As a child's eyes become more myopic, the child will become more dependent on glasses, more likely to get certain eye diseases such as glaucoma, retinal detachment, and myopic degeneration, and more likely to seek out refractive surgery which has its own set of adverse outcomes.

Myopia Treatment Options

Fortunately, there are very safe and effective treatment options to slow myopic deterioration. While there is nuance to which treatment option will be best for a specific child, the treatment the child is happiest to use is by far the most important factor in choosing which myopia management option is best.

Otho-K

One of the myopia treatment options involves a custom designed overnight contact lens “retainer” that works by gently reshaping the front of the eye while your child sleeps. This treatment not only can slow your child’s myopia, it also offers the benefit of allowing your child to see clearly all day without glasses or contact lenses.

Many parents are concerned that their child is not ready for contact lenses, our experience is that children as young as six can be very successful with these treatments with the proper education and support.

Otho-K FAQs

What Does “Ortho-K” Mean?

“Ortho-k” is short for orthokeratology. Orthokeratology is a technique that uses specialized contact lenses that (temporarily) reshape the curvature of the corneas during sleep, thus correcting for refractive errors and allowing for clear, lens-free vision upon awakening.

How Do Ortho-K Lenses Work?

Ortho-k lenses aren’t just contact lenses — they’re designed to act as molds that apply gentle corrective pressure on the flexible tissues of the cornea. This safe, painless pressure causes the corneas to conform to a new curvature that matches your corrective vision prescription. In the morning, simply take the lenses out and go about your day with no need for glasses or daytime contacts.

Can Ortho-K Slow the Development of Myopia?

Ortho-k can indeed slow myopia progression in children. Studies have shown that orthokeratology lenses can reduce the amount of myopia that develops during these years, when most myopia development occurs. By the time your nearsighted kids reach adulthood, they may enjoy substantially better vision from having used ortho-k lenses during childhood.

How Can your Optometrist Get Me Started With Ortho-K?

If you’re interested in exploring the potential of ortho-k for your child the first step is to schedule an eye exam with your optometrist at Visionary Eye Care.

Soft Multifocal Contact Lenses

Another excellent option to manage a child's myopia is the use of soft multifocal contact lenses. These lenses are very easy for children to quickly become accustomed in terms of comfort. The vast majority of our patients that use soft multifocal lenses for myopia management use a daily disposable lens, so that they get a fresh lens everyday and do not have to clean the lens at night. Newer soft multifocal contact lens designs are available for virtually any prescriptions regardless of the amount of myopia or astigmatism your child may have.


Atropine

Atropine eye drops have been used for pediatric eye conditons for over one hundred years. Atropine eye drops used only once a day can significantly slow down a child's myopic degeneration with little to no side effects. For children that are not yet ready for contact lenses atropine eye drops at the optimal concentration for the individual child can be an excellent treatment option. Newer studies and clinical experience at Visionary Eye Care have shown that children that are increasing exceptionally quickly in their myopia can benefit from using both specialized myopia management contact lenses as well as atropine drops. This combination therapy can result in keeping a child with a mild prescription from becoming severely myopic, thereby saving that child from the dependence and eye disease risk that comes with severe myopia.

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