Myopia control in children

Myopia is the medical term for near-sightedness or short-sightedness. Near-sighted eyes see nearby objects clearly, while objects far away are blurry without spectacles or contact lenses.
“Myopia is usually caused by the gradual elongation of the eyeball” said Dr Sonja Boost, a specialised optometrist based in Windhoek, said.
Many parents tend to ask themselves: What causes myopia? Why is it happening?
Genetics and ethnicity definitely play a huge role. This is the strongest single factor in predicting myopia in a child.
Is there a myopia gene? If one parent is near-sighted, their child has a three times greater risk for developing myopia, and if both parents are near-sighted, their child has a six times greater risk. Time spent on digital devices is clearly implicated in progressing myopia, while the child’s environment also plays a role.
Research proved that more time spent outdoors may reduce the risk of myopia, especially in very early childhood.
“As a parent of three young boys - of which two are near-sighted - I realised it was important for me to learn about the increasing prevalence of myopia, and most importantly to help me as a parent to take control of my children’s vision so that we could stabilise the level of myopia and minimise its progression over time,” Analise De Sousa, a mother of three, said.
Myopia in children can become worse as they grow. High myopia progresses rapidly in the formative years and not only impacts their school and sport performance, but could also increase the risk retinal detachment, myopic macular degeneration, cataracts and glaucoma. These eye diseases could lead to complications later on in their lives and even vision loss. The prevalence of myopia is increasing worldwide at an alarming rate, and children who are near-sighted almost always become more near-sighted over time.
“When it comes to my daughter’s eyesight, I prefer to hear the facts as bluntly as possible because, as a parent, at first it was surprising to see that my daughter’s glasses prescription is increasing from one year to the next,” Antonio van Wyk, father of a little girl with myopia, said.
During childhood, myopia is typically treated with glasses or contact lenses. But there a few other ways to treat myopia in children as well. These include:
Lifestyle changes: At least two hours spent outdoors in the natural daylight per day has been shown to reduce the progression of myopia.
Distance: Encourage your child to have an arm’s length distance from their books/digital devices, and ensure that the lighting is sufficient at all times.
The 20-20-20 rule: For every 20 minutes spent doing up-close work, take 20 seconds and look at an object 20 feet (six metres) away.
Keep their spectacles up to date: Studies have shown that wearing under-corrected spectacles actually prompts the eyes to progress more quickly. Specifically, designed lenses have been widely used to support near vision and simulate the eye to not grow too much.
Eye drops: Using very diluted dilating drops called Atropine can significantly reduce the progression of myopia. Side effects like light sensitivity and difficulty focusing close up are not very common. “Do not worry – we will show you a fun trick to insert the eye drops,” Boost said. Multifocal contact lenses: Prescribing soft multifocal contact lenses can moderately slow down the increase of the eye’s axial length by focusing the image differently on the retina.
Orthokeratology: This is the process of gently moulding the front part of the eye while you sleep with these contact lenses. When removing them in the morning, your vision is clear for the whole day.
Axial length monitoring: An instrument can measure and monitor the actual length of the eyeball and alert to requiring treatment.

Too often, parents don’t realise the importance of early vision care, and wait far too long to have their child’s vision checked. Here are some signs to look out for: Distance vision becoming blurry; moving closer to the TV; reduced performance at school; headaches; tired eyes, squinting. But do note that sometimes there are no signs at all as children adapt very well.