La myopia is one of refractive defects most common in the world and characterized by causing blurred vision of long-distance objects. The control of myopia It is very important to prevent this condition from progressing and avoid wearing glasses with higher graduation every year.
Few people know that myopia is considered a risk factor for eye diseases such as glaucoma y the cataracts, hence the importance of maintaining good control of this defect.
En Área Oftalmológica Avanzada We explain below some treatments for the control of myopia.
What is myopia control?
Myopia is a refractive defect that causes blurred vision of long-distance objects.
Currently, myopia is considered a pandemic, as more and more people suffer from this condition at younger ages.
Myopia can be corrected permanently through excimer laser refractive surgery. However, the recommended age for myopia operation It is usually from the age of 20 and, furthermore, not all people are candidates for the sight operation.
The control of myopia can be carried out through a series of treatments that offer to delay the progression of this defect to avoid, for example, that a child develops high levels of graduation that force him to wear glasses with very thick glasses.
High levels of graduation and the use of very thick glasses are factors associated with the development of Cataracts and retinal detachment.
Types of treatment for myopia control
The treatments for myopia control induce changes in the ocular structure that help reduce visual fatigue and the stress associated with the development of myopia.
Among the treatments for the control of myopia are:
Atropine drops
Atropine is a medicine used to dilate the pupil and paralyze the accommodation. Therefore, it has the power to completely relax the task of focusing the eye.
Because it has a lasting effect, atropine has long since ceased to be used in regular ophthalmology exams.
For some time, atropine drops have been used as a treatment to control myopia and pain caused by some types of uveitis.
The administration of atropine drops for the control of myopia offers impressive results, to such an extent that studies published between 1989 and 2010 concluded that it can reduce the progression of myopia by up to 81%. myopic children.
Contact lenses
All the contact lenses for myopia control they have turned out to be an excellent option. Modified multifocal soft lenses, as well as conventional ones, represent an effective and reversible treatment for the control of myopia.
different contact lens types in the market. Among them are the contact lenses Multifocals are lenses that have different powers in different areas to correct refractive defects.
Soft multifocal contact lenses have a concentric double-focus design that has proven useful in reducing axial elongation by 50% in two 10-month periods.
However, the use of contact lenses for myopia control It can be a bit complicated in children, since it requires a expert contactologist to perform a specific study of adaptation of multifocal contact lenses.
Orthokeratology
La orthokeratology It is an alternative that consists of wearing gas permeable contact lenses during nightly sleep hours.
These lenses have a particular shape that helps correct the corneal abnormality caused by myopia.
While the person is sleeping, the lens corrects myopia temporarily and offers an effect of up to three days.
Once the effect has been lost, the person should put the sleeping glasses back on.
This treatment is currently used to stop the progression of myopia in children, since it is very comfortable and allows the child not to wear glasses or contact lenses during the day.
Multifocal glasses
Multifocal glasses are also an alternative for the control of myopia in children, but they do not offer results as important as contact lenses.
The use of multifocal glasses is believed to slow the progression of myopia by 38%.
Why is myopia control important in children?
The control of myopia in children is very important because it is a way to protect their visual health for the future and avoid major complications that often have no solution.
The progression of myopia in children can generate, in the long term, problems for the child's visual health.
Even people with very mild myopia have a higher risk of suffering glaucoma, early cataract, retinal detachment y macular degeneration.
Finally, people whose myopia progresses to 5 diopters are up to 40 times more likely to have vision problems. taint Of the eye.
En Área Oftalmológica Avanzada We care about the visual health of our patients by carrying out an exhaustive control of myopia. Contact us if you need to make a review in our clinic.
