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myopia meaning
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About Myopia

Myopia is a common eye health condition which causes blurred distance vision (short-sightedness).

What is myopia?

Myopia is a common eye condition in which light is focused in front of the retina, resulting in blurred distance vision. People with myopia can often see quite clearly at close distance but distant objects will be blurred.

Myopia usually starts during childhood, typically progressing until the child stops growing. 

Myopia is a common eye health condition not just a vision condition.

The myopic eye

There are two reasons why myopia causes blurred distance vision:

  1. The eyeball grows too long.
  2. The cornea is too curved for the length of the eye.

 

myopia shape of eye explained

Source: Myopia in Children 

Managing myopia in children is important because:

  • Increasing myopia can lead to serious eye health problems in the future1.
  • As the child’s eyes grow and their myopia increases, the dependency on glasses increases.
  • As a child’s dependency on glasses increases it can reduce their ability to participate actively in sports and other activities.

Research shows that myopia is occurring earlier in life. In 1983, the typical onset of myopia was at around 11 years of age. However, in 2000, the average onset of myopia was just 8 years of age2.

The average onset age of myopia is getting younger.

 

myopia age group

 

Myopia is often a progressive condition. It will begin as mild but may progress in severity to moderate or high myopia. The earlier myopia starts, the greater chance a child has of developing high myopia.

The majority of myopia progression typically occurs between the ages of 6-17 years as this is a key growth time for children, and their eyes. 

Causes of myopia

There are two main risk factors for a child developing myopia: lifestyle and family history.

Lifestyle

Modern lifestyles may influence the development of myopia.  These include:

  • Low levels of outdoor activity3 and associated factors, including:
  • Low levels of light exposure4.
  • Prolonged near tasks5 such as reading and gaming on portable devices.

Family History

The likelihood of developing myopia, particularly high myopia, increases when one or both parents are myopic6. However, the exact link between a family history of myopia and the development of childhood myopia remains uncertain7.

short-sightedness symptoms

Low levels of outdoor activity.

causes of shortsightedness

Low levels of light exposure.

family history causes myopia

Performing prolonged near tasks, such as reading and gaming on portable devices.

What to look out for

What are the symptoms of myopia?

nearsightedness distance vision blurred
Distance vision becomes blurred.
nearsightness
Moving closer to the TV.
reduced perfomance shortsightedness
Reduced performance at school.
myopia symptoms headache
Complaints of headaches.
Tired eyes
Tired eyes.
symptoms of myopia
Squinting or screwing eyes up.

What you can do

Monitor eyesight and eye health
Monitor eyesight and eye health with regular eye exams by a qualified optometrist.
myopia treatment
Spending more time outdoors. A recent study showed children who spent an additional 40 minutes outdoors each day were at less risk of developing myopia.
what to do
Act early and speak with an optometrist as soon as symptoms emerge.

Management vs treating myopia

It is not only eyesight that suffers. It is important to remember that the impact of myopia is very personal and can potentially affect an individual’s quality of life. Higher degrees of myopia can not only be visually disabling, but also have financial, social and personal consequences8.

If a child has been diagnosed with myopia, it is vital that parents not only discuss how to correct their short-sightedness with their Optometrist, but also what management options are available to slow the progression of myopia and which will best suit the child and their lifestyle.

Treating myopia in children doesn’t mean just getting glasses.

As research and technological innovations in this area continue, optometrists now have a range of new management options which mean they can not only provide clear vision but slow down the progression of myopia.

Slowing the progression of myopia is important to reduce the potential risk of developing high myopia and its associated conditions later in life9. This is of significant concern given that high myopia is also associated with comorbidities like retinal detachment, glaucoma, cataracts and myopic macular degeneration. The risk of developing any of these conditions increases along with any increase in myopia10.

Although lifetime risks of developing several serious eye conditions increase significantly with higher degrees of myopia, no level is safe.

There is good evidence supporting the importance of managing myopia. 

There are a range of treatment options for myopia; some correct vision and some correct vision and slow the progression of myopia. Speak to your Optometrist about options that slow the progression of myopia.

FAQs based on common questions searched on Google

Can you really slow or stop myopia (near-sightedness)?

There are a number of management options available that can help to slow the progression of myopia. Many are available to Optometry and are already in regular use. Talk to an optometrist about the best management option for your child which will best suit their lifestyle.

Can myopia correct itself or be cured naturally?

Myopia cannot correct itself or be cured. Myopia needs to be managed. It has been established that managing myopia in its early stages can help to slow its progression, reducing the potential risk of developing high myopia and its associated conditions11.

What myopia treatment is available?

Although lifetime risks of developing several serious eye conditions increase significantly with higher degrees of myopia, no level is safe.
There is good evidence supporting the importance of managing myopia.
There are a range of treatment options for myopia; some correct vision and some correct vision and slow the progression of myopia. Speak to your Optometrist about options that slow the progression of myopia.

What causes blurred vision?

Myopia can cause blurred vision for two reasons. Firstly, the eyeball grows too long and secondly, the cornea is too curved for the length of the eye. In the myopic eye, light from distant objects is focused in front of the retina causing blurred vision.

what does myopia look like

What does myopia look like?

If you’re curious what myopia looks like through your child’s eyes, find out by using our Myopia Vision Simulator Tool. It shows you what the school classroom, school science lab and the sports hall look like through their eyes.

Myopia Vision Simulator right arrow icon

1 Holden B; Fricke T; Wilson D; Jong M; Naidoo K; Sankaridurg P; Wong T; Naduvilath T; Resnikoff S. Global prevalence of myopia and high myopia and temporal trends from 2000 through 2050. American Academy of Ophthalmology 2016
2 Lin LL, Shih YF, Hsiao CK et al. Prevalence of myopia in Taiwanese school children: 1983 to 2000. Ann Acad Med Singapore. 2004; 33:27-33
3 He M, Xiang F, Zeng Y et al. Effect of time spent outdoors at school on the development of myopia among children in China: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA 2015; 314:1142-1148
4 Read SA, Collins MJ, Vincent SJ. Light exposure and eye growth in childhood. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science 2015: 56(11):6779-6787
5 Ip JM, Saw SM, Rose KA, Morgan IG, Kifley A, Wang JJ, Mitchell P. Role of near work in myopia: Findings in a sample of Australian school children. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science 2008:49(7): 2903-2910
6 Lim LT, Gong Y, Ah-Kee EY, Xiao G, Zhang X. Impact of parental history of myopia on the development of myopia in mainland China school-aged children. Ophthalmology and Eye Disease. 2014;6:31-5
7 Ip J, Huynh S, Robaei D, Rose K, Morgan I, Smith W, Kifley A, Mitchell P. Ethnic differences in the impact of parental myopia: Findings from a population-based study of 12-year-old Australian children. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science. 2007:48:2520-2528
8 Rose K, Harper R, Tromans C et al. Quality of life in myopia. British Journal of Ophthalmology 2000; 84:1031-1034
9 Sankaridurg PR, Holdent BA. Practical applications to modify and control the development of ametropia. Eye 2014; 28: 134-141
10 Holden B; Fricke T; Wilson D; Jong M; Naidoo K; Sankaridurg P; Wong T; Naduvilath T; Resnikoff S. Global prevalence of myopia and high myopia and temporal trends from 2000 through 2050. American Academy of Ophthalmology 2016
11 Sankaridurg PR, Holden BA. Practical applications to modify and control the development of ametropia. Eye 2014; 28:134-141