Our new Q&A format is designed to explore a particular clinical topic, intervention, product or research paper with an expert. Here, we explore the OCULUS Myopia Master with practical questions of how optometrist Max Aricochi uses it in his clinic in Austria. We also provide you some additional tips to help you put Max’s recommendations to use in your own practice.
This cross-over study investigated children wearing highly aspherical lenslet (HAL) spectacle lenses versus single vision spectacles over three six-month periods. The HAL lenses showed consistent myopia control efficacy and no rebound effect when discontinued over one of the six-month periods.
Nightly use of atropine 0.01% was able to reduce myopia progression and axial elongation for Chinese children over 9 months. However, this study also found that refractive astigmatism may increase within the first 3 months of treatment as a result.
Teenagers in the Netherlands were able to spend time outdoors during the COVID pandemic but still significantly increased near work on digital devices.. This is expected to give an increase in myopia prevalence and progression in European teens but to a lesser extent than in Asia where there was restricted outdoor time with stricter lockdown.
This is the first meta-analysis to directly compare mean axial growth across studies, looking at how age and ethnicity contribute to differences. Current axial length growth charts differentiate by sex and ethnicity, with age being the key variable. The results indicate that mean annual axial length growth is 28% greater in Asian compared to non-Asian children., reaffirming the need for Asian-specific data.
With increasing use of axial length to monitor myopia progression, the ratio of refractive error change to axial elongation has important clinical implications. This systematic review determines this ratio and explores factors that influence it.
The age of onset of myopia influences the annual progression rate and is also race dependent. Delaying the onset of myopia can save approximately 0.75D a year on the final prescription reached, similar to the saving offered by myopia control methods.
In young adult myopes, Biofinity centre-distance +2.50 Add and NaturalVue multifocal contact lenses both showed reduced visual acuity in lower lighting and low contrast conditions, and especially with a glare source, compared to single vision. Reading rate under normal lighting was also reduced by 4-8%. The multifocal designs performed similarly, although Biofinity required more over-refraction for best distance acuity.
Caffeine-based eye drops created hyperopic shifts in baby rhesus monkeys during the emmetropization process, and protected against myopia development due to induced hyperopic defocus. The serum level of caffeine was similar to one cup of coffee in a human adult. This potential future myopia treatment requires further research on dosage, benefits and side effects before use in humans.
This study investigated the working distance and head posture of Chinese myopic children while reading, writing and playing video games. The average working distance across all tasks was 24.5cm, with the shortest working distance and largest head declination observed while children played video games. There was no influence of level of myopia or accommodative lag on working distance or head position.
