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Core Insights:
- Myopia control helps protect your child’s vision now and in the future.
- There are safe, effective treatment options to fit your child’s needs and lifestyle.
- Most children adapt to myopia control treatment quickly with gentle guidance and support.
- Regular checkups help us keep a close eye on changes and fine-tune the plan as your child grows.
When beginning myopia management treatment, there may be a brief adjustment period as your child adapts to a new routine or vision correction method. Fortunately, most myopia control options fit easily into daily life and become second nature with consistent use.
Regular follow-up visits are an important part of treatment, allowing us to monitor eye growth, track progress, and make any necessary adjustments along the way. The goal of myopia management is not only to improve vision today, but also to help reduce the risk of future eye health complications associated with progressive myopia.
At Weston Contact Lens Institute, we are committed to providing personalized, evidence-based myopia management to help protect your child's vision and support lifelong eye health.
Why Does Myopia Need to Be Controlled?
As children grow, their eyes grow as well. In an eye with normal development, the length of the eye and its focusing power remain well balanced, allowing light to focus directly on the retina and produce clear vision.
Myopia, or nearsightedness, occurs when the eye grows too long from front to back. As a result, light focuses in front of the retina rather than directly on it, causing distant objects to appear blurry. This process, known as axial elongation, often progresses throughout childhood and adolescence before stabilizing in early adulthood.
Myopia is more than simply needing stronger glasses over time. Higher levels of myopia are associated with an increased risk of eye conditions later in life, including retinal detachment, myopic macular degeneration, glaucoma, and cataracts. For this reason, modern myopia management focuses not only on correcting vision but also on slowing the progression of myopia and supporting long-term eye health.
What Are the Best Myopia Control Treatments?
At Weston Contact Lens Institute, we offer advanced myopia control treatments proven to slow axial elongation. We offer treatments customized to diverse visual needs and lifestyles: orthokeratology lenses, atropine eye drops, MiSight one-day lenses, and Essilor® Stellest® spectacle lenses. Our Myopia Management Clinic was created to help those with myopia to protect their long-term eye health and enjoy clear vision.
Orthokeratology Lenses
Orthokeratology, or ortho-K, lenses are rigid, custom-designed for each unique eye. The lenses are only worn at night while sleeping and removed in the morning. Ortho-K lenses gently reshape the cornea, keeping the patient’s vision clear throughout the day. One of the most important benefits of ortho-K is that there’s no need for glasses or traditional contact lenses, making it an excellent treatment for kids with active lifestyles who struggle with other corrective methods.
Atropine Eye Drops
Atropine is a medication that dilates the pupil and relaxes the eye’s focus center when used in high doses. In low doses, it can be used to slow the progression of myopia. Atropine is usually used in conjunction with corrective glasses or lenses. It may be used to enhance the effectiveness of other management treatments.
MiSight One-Day Lenses
MiSight® 1 day contact lenses are an FDA-approved option for myopia management in children. Because they are soft daily disposable lenses, many patients adapt to them quickly and find them easy to incorporate into their daily routine.
One of the advantages of MiSight lenses is their convenience. A fresh pair is used each day and discarded after wear, eliminating the need for cleaning, disinfection, and lens storage. This simple routine can make them an appealing option for families seeking an effective and easy-to-manage approach to myopia control.
In addition to correcting vision, MiSight lenses are designed to help slow the progression of myopia during childhood. As with any myopia management treatment, regular follow-up visits are important to monitor progress and ensure the best possible outcome.
Essilor® Stellest® Spectacle Lenses
Essilor® Stellest® lenses are specially designed eyeglass lenses that do more than correct blurry vision. They are also intended to help slow the progression of myopia in children.
Using H.A.L.T. (Highly Aspherical Lenslet Target) technology, Stellest lenses incorporate over 1,000 tiny lenslets that create a signal designed to help manage eye growth while providing clear vision for everyday activities.
For children who wear glasses regularly, Stellest lenses offer a seamless way to incorporate myopia management into their daily routine. An eye care professional can help determine whether they are an appropriate option based on your child's age, prescription, and visual needs.
What Will My Child Experience When Starting Myopia Control?
Like any new routine, myopia management involves an adjustment period, and every child adapts at their own pace. The experience will vary depending on the treatment method selected, as well as your child’s age, personality, and previous experience with glasses or contact lenses.
For children using orthokeratology lenses, the biggest challenge is often learning how to insert and remove the lenses. Most children become more comfortable with the process after a few days of practice and guidance. Because ortho-K lenses are worn while sleeping, children are typically unaware of the lenses during the night and quickly adapt to the routine.
Children beginning MiSight® contact lenses also go through a learning process when first handling and inserting their lenses. With patience, practice, and proper instruction, most children become confident and independent contact lens wearers. Our team provides hands-on training and support to help both parents and children feel comfortable every step of the way.
During the first few weeks of treatment, it is normal to have questions as new habits are established. Regular follow-up visits allow us to monitor progress, address any concerns, and ensure your child is adapting well to treatment. If your child experiences persistent redness, pain, significant discomfort, or changes in vision, you should contact our office promptly for further evaluation.
Why Does My Child Need a Dedicated Myopia Management Clinic?
We started the Myopia Management Clinic at Weston Contact Lens Institute to provide comprehensive, personalized support for the growing number of children with myopia. Because untreated myopia can have such severe long-term consequences, it’s crucial to address any visual issues as soon as possible. If you think your child might have myopia or you’re interested in exploring different control treatments, contact us to schedule a consultation.
