Game changer glasses for myopic kids & teens

Many young people we see are myopic (short-sighted) ,and we spend a lot of time working with them and their families on treatments to slow the progression/worsening of their myopia.  The kids and teens with the blurry vision totally understand when their eyes are changing and vision getting worse – sometimes even more than some parents.

Myopia occurs when the axial length of the eye increases, stretching the eye and is associated with increased risk to longer term eye health.  The higher the myopia, the higher the risks.  So these health risks along with the person being more dependent on glasses with higher prescriptions that have thicker and more costly lens options mean that managing myopic progression is a priority for our young people.

Our treatment choices so far have been contact lenses with special optics or nightly eye drops that both have good evidence of slowing the rate of myopic progression.  Until now there hasn’t been a spectacle lens option that will significantly slow the progression of the myopia

Standard single vision spectacle lenses have a centre optical power to focus the vision, onto the centre of the retina.  But this single power results in the periphery of the retina having a detrimental focus effect, thought to increase the rate of myopic progression.

The optical effects from new types of contact lenses are used to slow myopia progression by altering the focus on the peripheral retina. But how to create a spectacle lens that the eyes move behind, focusing to the vision, but not triggering the peripheral retina changes that are likely causing the myopia to further increase?

Defocus Incoporated Multiple Segments (DIMS) technology gives us a spectacle lens to correct the myopia with hundreds of tiny lenslets that alter the focus on the periphery of the retina. 
A central optical zone with the required distance power is surrounded by a ring of the 400 tiny (1mm) +3.50 lenslets spaced over main lens power. So the general vision clarity is maintained, but the periphery of the retina receives a defocus effect.

The optics of the lens have shown to have minimal effect on the viewer’s quality of vision, although it is critical that the lenses are fitted accurately to an appropriate frame that is stable and sized so that the eyes are in the centre of the lenses.  The lens looks quite normal.

A study published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology showed over 2 years a 60% reduction in the rate of myopia progression, with DIMS lens, and for 21% of children there was no progression of their myopia.

We are recommending this as a first choice lens for their glasses worn for myopia.  At CapitalEyes we recommend review consultations 6 monthly for children and teenagers with developing myopia.  If the progression continues, then additional treatments may be recommended.