Further statistics on the rise of myopia were presented by Review of Myopia Management at the American Optometric Association’s Myopia Matters meeting in late June.  

On behalf of the Review, Jobson Optical Research polled over 300 US optometrists to learn more about their attitudes and behaviours towards myopia management. The results are both encouraging and disappointing, said the Review’s chief medical editor Dwight Akerman. While 62.5% of optometrists surveyed said their practices provide myopia management services, almost four in ten (37.5%) said their practices do not offer myopia care for children.  

“With so many myopia treatment options available that have demonstrated efficacy, optometrists have a professional responsibility to discuss myopia management options with all parents of children at risk for progressive myopia. Working together, we can reverse the myopia epidemic.” 

According to the Brien Holden Institute, it is currently estimated that over one third of the world’s population is myopic, with that figure expected to rise to half of the world’s population by 2050. This equates to five billion myopes and one billion of these are expected to have high myopia.