When a child has myopia, it often progresses very rapidly during their childhood years. It's important to talk to your eye doctor about myopia control being a part of their eye care. When you're interested in myopia control for your child, call Family Eyecare of Glendale to make an eye exam appointment with one of our eye doctors.
Eye Drops
There is a type of medicated eye drop called atropine that can be used for myopia control. This is often an easy option that children quickly get used to. Atropine drops for this purpose are a different dosage of the same medication that is used in eye dilation. When these drops are administered every night, they can affect the eyes by slowing down myopia's progress.
When the progress is slowed, and in some cases stopped, myopia won't get as pronounced as it would have without the drops. This means that the child's eyesight as an adult, when prescriptions stabilize, would be better than it would have been naturally. Atropine drops are given to the child every night before bed for the best results.
Contact Lenses
There is another common method of myopia control, but it may take a little longer to get used to. Wearing contact lenses known as ortho-k lenses is another way to stop or slow myopia's progression. These contacts are specialty lenses that aren't worn during the day like other contacts.
Instead, they are worn only at night while the child is sleeping. This allows the contacts to gently add pressure to the eye so that it is subtly reshaped during the night. In the morning, they are removed, and the child won't need to wear glasses that day. Using this method can be a great way to protect a child's vision.
Book Your Child's Next Eye Exam
Part of your child's eye care is to see an eye doctor every year. To visit our optometry center for myopia control, call Family Eyecare of Glendale today at (602) 843-2900 or reach us through our website by using our online contact form.