Myopia, also known as nearsightedness, is the most common reason for blurry vision in patients under 40. It's caused by eyes that grow too long. We can measure the length an eye with an optical instrument in our office. That measurement is called axial length. Once we know a patients age and axial length we can compare the patient to average growth and axial length tables and know the patients risk of developing more myopia. But its more than just blurry vision, increased myopia can lead to higher risk of retina detachment and myopic maculopathy.

Myopia Management is helpful for patients age 6 to 16, during the growth phase of their eyes. Below is a link to a website with information we found helpful with the subject of myopia.

We are here to help our patients age 6 to 16 manage their myopia. We use a Zeiss IOLmaster to measure axial length, the measurement is painfree, doesn't involve touching the eye, is accurate to a tenth of a millimeter and only takes minutes to perform. Since this instrument helps us in predicting risk for myopia progression, we can decide what treatment to persuit to reduce myopia progression. Also, this instrument can help to see how well your treatment is working over time.

Treatments we use for Myopia Management

• Environmental Recommendations- limiting electronic devices time, spending time outdoors, lighting while reading and working indoors, rest and relaxation. 
• Pharmacuetical interventions- Atropine eye drops at different strengths as needed and customized to each patient. We use data from studies to guide our decision making.
• Optical interventions- DIMS lenses (not yet available in USA), multifocal glasses lenses or contact lenses with peripheral defocus to reduce eyes tendency to grow too much. 

The goal of these treatments is to slow the growth of the eye, and we are having great results in patients age 6 to 16.