Thirty-six-month data from the CYPRESS clinical trial of SightGlass Vision’s Diffusion Optics Technology (DOT)-equipped spectacle lenses demonstrated a slowing of myopia progression in children aged six to 10 years at enrolment. 

According to researchers, intervention significantly reduced both axial length and cycloplegic spherical equivalent refractive error progression versus control, showed low device-related adverse event rates and no serious adverse events were reported. Distance and near visual performance was 20/20 or better and remained stable, and low-contrast visual acuity was similar to control. While the lens proved beneficial at all ages, the slowing of myopia progression among children aged six to seven years at the initiation of treatment was of particular note, according to authors. DOT lenses use thousands of micro-dots, scattering light to reduce contrast on the retina.

“There are currently no other interventions with this degree of demonstrated efficacy for six- and seven-year-old children, even though more severe adult myopia is generally linked to earlier onset,” said Andrew Sedgwick, CEO of SightGlass Vision. “We purposefully enrolled a subset of younger children to examine this gap in myopia control research and treatment options. With its unique mechanism of action, our Diffusion Optics Technology is a new approach and represents a first line of defence for young myopes.”  

The study, ‘Safety and efficacy of a novel spectacle lens for myopia control over three years’, was presented at the 2022 American Academy of Optometry annual meeting in San Diego.