If your child is nearsighted (myopic), it may seem like a great idea to get him or her a new pair of glasses. They will surely improve how well your child sees but, unfortunately, will do nothing to slow myopia progression. You can offer your child MUCH more than a pair of specs — something that will ensure long term vision health care and quality of life: Myopia Management.
Myopia Management is made up of several treatments designed to slow down how quickly myopia, or shortsightedness, progresses. In other words, their prescription will remain the same as they grow older. The treatments include uniquely designed multifocal contact lenses, atropine eye drops, and orthokeratology ("ortho-k"). Evidence suggests that myopia management can reduce the progression of myopia by up to 60% after two years of treatment.
What Makes Myopia Management An Excellent Gift?
Currently, myopia is among the leading causes of permanent vision loss and legal blindness.
As a child quickly develops and their nearsighted vision worsens, the child is at a higher risk of developing dangerous eye diseases later in life, such as retinal detachment, macular degeneration, glaucoma, and cataracts.
To thwart any of these sight-robbing conditions, Five Points Eye Care offers evidence-based treatment to prevent the onset or reduce the progression of myopia in our pediatric patients.
Myopia management enables your child to experience a more mild form of myopia than he or she would have otherwise had without treatment. Having mild-degree myopia means that your child's likelihood of developing retinal detachment or macular degeneration is dramatically reduced.
So why don't you make this holiday gift a particularly special one by protecting your child's precious gift of sight. And the best part? It will pay off well after the holidays are over.
On behalf of Dr. Nadine Forché & Dr. Meg Brya and the staff at Five Points Eye Care in Athens, we'd like to wish you all the best for the holiday season and the New Year!
