Myopia Management

Myopia increasingly represents an epidemic. According to the World Health Organization, myopic 2.5 billion will be between now and 2020. A trend confirmed also by the experts of the Brien Holden Vision Institute, an Australian non-governmental organization that deals with research in the field of ophthalmology: by 2050 5 billion people will suffer from this vision disorder.

Myopia has been recognized as a serious public health problem that causes major visual loss and a risk factor for a variety of serious eye conditions. Macular degeneration is the most common cause of vision impairment in patients with myopia since 10% of people with pathological myopia have macular degeneration. Myopia is also associated with an increased risk of glaucoma and cataract development.

In some countries, the growing prevalence of myopia has reached epidemic levels, requiring an urgent need for a new management approach. First, it is essential to consider the factors that influence the decision to manage myopia. Investing in public and parental education on the benefits of managing myopia is a key factor in the feasibility of treatment. Healthcare professionals and public health stakeholders should also be aware of the importance of the intervention in young patients with myopia.

Myopia management strategies can be grouped into three main categories: optical, pharmacological and environmental. Optical interventions include the use of glasses and contact lenses. There are various approaches based on spectacle lenses that include standard and custom single vision ophthalmic lenses, bifocal and progressive lenses. Different modes of contact lenses can be adopted for the management of myopia, including soft single vision contact lenses, soft multifocal lenses and ortho-k lenses. Topical atropine has dominated both clinical trials and medical clinical practice and is currently widely used in the medical field. The environmental approach consists of encouraging outdoor activities and achieving indoor light levels comparable to outdoor ones and the adequate intake of vitamin D.