New FDA-approved glasses can slow nearsightedness in kids

[intrepidity]

1. Sounds promising

As one with progressive myopia since 3rd grade, new stronger Rx every year, who later suffered retinal detachment and cataracts....wish this had been sooner, but happy that it will help kids now.

Over time, myopia causes the eye to grow longer, worsening vision and increasing the risk of tears to the retina — the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye that is essential for vision.

The new lenses use 11 concentric rings filled with tiny raised dots to refocus light onto the retina in a way that is believed to slow elongation of the eye.

“Whether this hypothesis is ultimately proven to be true, of course, matters only in part,” Repka said, noting that the lenses appear to work regardless of how the underling science works.

In the company study, children wearing the lens showed a 50% reduction in eye lengthening when measured after two years. Currently, researchers in the U.S. and other countries are conducting their own independent studies to confirm those results.