Understanding and Managing Your Child’s Nearsightedness (Myopia)
Myopia (or near-sightedness) means your child can see up close clearly, but distance vision looks blurry. It happens when the eye grows, causing light to focus in front of the retina instead of on it.
Why It Matters
Myopia usually starts in childhood and often worsens each year. As it progresses, the eyeball will continue to grow but the retina does not, which leads to stretching/thinner areas of the retina. This impact increases the lifetime risk of retinal detachment, glaucoma, cataracts, and myopic macular degeneration. Even a 1 mm increase in eye length (axial length) significantly raises these risks — that’s why slowing the growth of the eye is so important.
The Goal of Myopia Management
The aim is not to “cure” myopia but to slow down how quickly it worsens. This helps protect your child’s long-term eye health.
Evidence-Based Treatment Options
Our goal is to protect your child’s vision for life — not just help them see today. With our management protocol, your child will experience a significant slowdown in their myopia progression and maintain healthier eyes long-term.
Stellest™ Spectacle Lenses
What It Is:
Glasses with special lenslets that control how light focuses in the eye
How It Works:
Creates peripheral defocus that tells the eye to slow its growth
Typical Benefit:
~50–60% slower progression; ~0.35 mm less eye growth over 2 years
Atropine Eye Drops
What It Is:
Specially compounded prescription drops used nightly before bed.
How It Works:
Relaxes the focusing system and affects chemical signals that drive eye growth
Typical Benefit:
~50–60% slower progression; ~0.35-0.40 mm less eye growth over 2 years
MiSight® or NaturalVue® Contact Lenses
What It Is:
Daily disposable soft lenses
How It Works:
Similar optical design to Stellest but in contact lens form
Typical Benefit:
~50–60% slower progression; ~0.30 mm less eye growth over 3 years
Orthokeratology (“Ortho-K”)
What It Is:
Specially compounded prescription drops used nightly before bed.
How It Works:
Relaxes the focusing system and affects chemical signals that drive eye growth
Typical Benefit:
~50–60% slower progression; ~0.35-0.40 mm less eye growth over 2 years