Bringing Your Child’s View Into Focus
objects appear out of focus. Myopia most often begins developing during childhood and worsens until vision stabilizes around age 20. It’s a common vision problem, affecting nearly 30% of Canadians.
Although myopia is generally easily corrected with glasses or contact lenses, there are eye health risks associated with high myopia. And since more cases of high myopia are developing worldwide, doctors are increasingly interested in creating effective, safe ways of preventing this vision problem from worsening.At Vancouver Block Optometrists, we can diagnose myopia during a children’s eye exam and provide personalized recommendations for controlling it using proven methods. Please reach out to us if you have any questions.
How Myopia Develops
Babies are born with short eyes, meaning they’re farsighted (hyperopic) and can see objects at a distance while nearby objects are out of focus. This is normal, and their eyes will grow until they reach the expected length. The eyes usually stop growing once normal (emmetropic) vision is reached and no refractive errors exist.
However, some children’s eyes continue to grow beyond the normal length, becoming too long and affecting the eye’s ability to see distant objects clearly. The eyes grow faster during childhood and slow down during adolescence, so children who develop myopia early (around ages 6 to 8) have more years of rapid eye growth, making them at greater risk of developing high myopia.
High myopia increases the risk of:
Myopia is not reversible, so it’s especially important to control or slow myopia progression during these formative childhood years. This is where myopia control comes in.
What Is Myopia Control?
Myopia control consists of several methods designed to change the focusing abilities of the eyes to reduce the visual stress associated with myopia progression. Different control methods use different theories to achieve the same effect.
There are 4 accepted methods of myopia control: atropine drops, multifocal contact lenses, multifocal eyeglass lenses, and orthokeratology contact lenses. At Vancouver Block Optometrists, we offer MiSight® contact lenses, MiyoSmart eyeglass lenses, and low-dose atropine drops.
MiSight 1 Day Contact Lenses
MiSight 1 day contact lenses are clinically proven to help slow the growth of the eye while simultaneously correcting vision. It uses myopic defocus to focus light in front of the retina rather than behind it to encourage eye growth to slow down.
These contact lenses are single-use (used for one day then discarded), easy to fit, and suitable for children as young as 8.
MiyoSmart Eyeglasses
MiyoSmart lenses are designed to control myopia progression using Hoya’s patented D.I.M.S technology to encourage myopic defocus.
These noninvasive eyeglasses are specially designed for a child’s lifestyle and are:
- Anti-reflective
- Impact-resistant
- Thin and light
- UV protective
Low-Dose Atropine Drops
Low-dose atropine drops use a complex mechanism to bind to the growth receptors in the eyes, blocking stimulation that encourages the elongation of the eye.
Bring Your Child to Vancouver Block Optometrists
We provide comprehensive children’s eye exams and offer personalized myopia management plans for children who would benefit from myopia control. We’re devoted to protecting your family’s eye health for life, so please call us today to book an appointment.
Our Location
- #800-736 Granville Street
- Vancouver, BC V6Z 1G3
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Hours of Operation
*Open alternate Saturday’s from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Please call for availability.
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Vancouver Block Optometrists
- #800-736 Granville Street
- Vancouver, BC V6Z 1G3
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P: 604-681-8653
[email protected]