A new study suggests that administering an eyedrop can delay or even prevent myopia in children.
A nightly drop of atropine in the eyes of children from ages four to nine results in a significant decrease in chances of developing myopia, also commonly called nearsightedness in two years time, Hong Kong researchers revealed in a report they published in the JAMA Network.
Eyedrops containing 0.05 percent atropine delivered the best results, with a statistically significant difference against using eyedrops with a placebo.
While researchers said that a deeper study is needed to confirm and replicate their findings, lead study author and associate professor of ophthalmology at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Dr. Jason Yam, described their findings as promising.
Given that vision degrades with age, utilization of atropine eyedrops could be a way to stop vision problems early on in childhood before they become a serious eye disease later in life.
A rising trend
"Early onset myopia is associated with high myopia later in life and it's irreversible. Therefore, delay in myopia onset can decrease the risk of high myopia and future complications. Our study established the most effective method to delay myopia onset," Yam explained.
Myopia or nearsightedness is a rising trend overall, especially in children, according to HealthyChildren.org.
It is a prevalent vision problem that usually begins when children hit the age of six to 14. The problem affects an average of five percent of preschoolers, nine percent of school-aged children, and 30 percent of adolescents.
Parents usually pass on their nearsightedness to their children. This could be the primary cause. However, due to the dramatic increase in time spent on indoor activities such as computers and video games, experts believe these are also related causes.
Effective treatment, optometrists-proven
Healthline talked to several optometrists and found that while the study gave additional information regarding atropine as a treatment for nearsightedness, it has already been used for years.
Optometrist Laura Vasilakos told the news outlet that she and other fellow doctors have already started prescribing a routine of low-dose atropine eyedrops for children having myopia.
Dana Spearin, a fellow optometrist, agreed, stating that atropine eyedrops are indeed a helpful treatment. All her patients to whom she administered 0.05 percent atropine had no abnormal myopic or nearsighted increase in two years.
According to Vasilakos, once a child experiences myopia, their vision "deteriorates" every six to 12 months with increased strength and dosage of required prescription. It will eventually stabilize during the stage of young adulthood. Yet, the initial progression, where the eyes grow and stretch too much, can lead to serious eye problems in the future, like myopic macular degeneration, retinal detachment, glaucoma, and cataracts. The higher the myopia, the bigger the risks.
Thus, she wanted parents to be aware that the "most important opportunity to slow eye growth" is while the kids are still young, between the age of four and nine, as the study showed, because myopia progresses the fastest in these ages also.
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