Testing children for myopia News.at

2023-08-29 19:58:00

It is a worldwide phenomenon that children are more and more often affected by myopia. With myopia, as it is called in medical jargon, close-up vision is very good, but distant objects are blurry.

The reason is that with normal sighted people, a distant object is imaged directly on the retina, but with myopic people, it is slightly before it. In Europe, 30 percent of the population suffer from it, and the number is increasing dramatically, especially among children.

According to studies, 50 percent of all children worldwide could be nearsighted by 2030. School-age children suffer from this in particular because the ametropia makes everyday school life more difficult. For example, copying from the blackboard becomes torture, street signs and faces can only be recognized with difficulty on the way to school, many have headaches and performance suffers.

Myopia can be accurately measured during an eye exam. “It is best to make an appointment with an ophthalmologist in order to have clarity in good time or to start taking therapeutic precautions as soon as possible,” advises Paul Niederberger, ophthalmologist in Traun and head of the ophthalmologists’ specialist group in Upper Austria. And adds: “For a successful school career, children need to see well.”

Incurable myopia

Even if myopia cannot be cured, its progression can be slowed down. “Special newly developed contact lenses and spectacle lenses as well as atropine eye drops play a balancing role here,” says the expert. “Also note that the severity of myopia increases the risk of other eye diseases – which can ultimately lead to irreparable damage. That’s why prevention is so important.”

Get outside as therapy

In addition to glasses, contact lenses and atropine eye drops, ophthalmologists recommend that children stay outdoors for at least two hours a day. “This measure is not only suitable for curbing the progression, but also for reducing the risk of myopia in general,” says Niederberger. Daylight promotes the healthy development of children’s eyes. “Of course, videos and smartphones are an integral part of everyday life, but make sure you take breaks: ten minutes of screen breaks per hour and a minimum distance of 30 centimeters.”