Care / Myopia Control

Myopia Management

Childhood myopia tends to get worse year by year until early adulthood; the faster it progresses, the higher the final prescription and the higher the lifetime risk of retinal complications. Modern myopia management uses evidence-based tools to slow that progression while a child's eyes are still growing.

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Quick facts about myopia management

Eligible from Around age 2
Visits per year 3–4 in the first year, then 2–3
Treatment formats Atropine drops, Ortho-K, prescription glasses with myopia control lenses
Time to assess effect 6 months minimum
Outcome Well-managed children progress at roughly half the untreated rate

What is myopia management?

In children, myopia rarely stands still. The set of tools below slows the eye's growth — so a child finishes at a lower final prescription, with a lower adult risk of sight-threatening changes.

How the eye grows, with and without management

Axial length of a myopic child's eye between ages 6 and 16.

Without management With management

Axial length (mm)

Axial length by age, with and without myopia management Two lines from age 6 to age 16. Without management, axial length rises from 23.0 mm to 26.0 mm, a gain of 3.0 mm. With management, it rises from 23.0 mm to 24.8 mm, a gain of 1.8 mm. 23 24 25 26 6 8 10 12 14 16 +3.0 mm +1.8 mm

Age (years)

Illustrative pattern, not a prediction — every child progresses differently. At European Eye Center your child's own axial length is measured and plotted at each visit, so you can see their real curve rather than an average one.
How the treatment works

Three evidence-based tools, one strategy

Myopia management uses three main tools, alone or in combination. Which one — or which mix — fits depends on your child’s age, prescription, axial length, family history and daily routine. That’s what the first assessment decides.

  • Low-dose atropine drops — nightly drop that slows the biological signalling driving eye elongation. Compatible with glasses or daytime contact wear.
  • Ortho-K (overnight rigid lens) — reshapes the central cornea while sleeping; clear daytime vision without correction, with peripheral-defocus benefit.
  • Prescription glasses with myopia control lenses — daytime spectacle lenses with a built-in peripheral-defocus design; the simplest format for many children, no contact-lens routine needed.

Who myopia management is for

The earlier a child's myopia is being managed, the more years of progression there are to slow — and the more difference it makes by the time they stop growing.

Myopia that is actively progressing

Children and teenagers with actively progressing myopia — a prescription that is moving year on year

Higher risk of fast progression

Children at higher risk of fast progression — early onset, both parents myopic, a fast first-year jump from no prescription to a real one

Myopia already high enough that future risk counts

Children whose myopia is already at a level where future risk of retinal complications matters

Wanting fewer daytime glasses

Children who want to reduce daytime glasses dependence (Ortho-K is particularly suited to this)

Teenagers not yet stabilised

Teenagers who haven't yet stabilised — progression often continues into the late teens

Not the right fit if: the patient is an adult with a stable prescription that hasn't moved in years — in that case the conversation moves to refractive surgery (LASIK, ICL, or RLE), not myopia control. Stable myopia in adulthood is corrected, not slowed.

Started early, it changes the trajectory.

The strongest evidence for myopia management is in children whose progression is caught early and managed consistently. The longer a child's eye spends growing, the more impact a programme can have.

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Your treatment experience

How a programme runs, year on year

Myopia management is paced for the child — structured first month, then routine quarterly checks, then an annual reassessment that compares axial length against the previous year.

01

Initial assessment with axial-length biometry

Child-paced examination, full refraction, slit-lamp review, retinal screening, and axial-length measurement. The first visit is what every later visit is compared against.

02

Treatment selection

Discussion of atropine, Ortho-K, and prescription glasses with myopia control lenses in context. The recommendation is built around the child's prescription, axial length, age, and routine.

03

First-month adjustment, then ongoing reviews

Close review through the first month to confirm comfort and adherence. After that, quarterly or half-yearly checks track refraction and eyeball elongation.

04

Annual reassessment until stable

A full reassessment with axial-length re-measurement every 6 months in the first years, then annually once axial length stabilises. The programme continues through the teenage years until the prescription stabilises.

Aftercare & monitoring

What the year looks like, milestone by milestone

Myopia management is a long programme, not a procedure. The reviews are how we know whether what we are doing is working.

Where your child is in the programme

Axial length is re-measured at each review and added to your child’s own curve. The dashed line is the projected trajectory without myopia control.

Review milestones and the effect of myopia control Two axial-length curves rising over the first year and beyond. The blue solid line is the child's own measured curve at review points at the start, month 1, month 6 and month 12. The amber dashed line above it is the projected trajectory without myopia control, rising faster over the same interval. Axial length → 0 1 6 12 →

Months from starting

  • With myopia control (your child's curve)
  • Without intervention (projected)
Month 1

Adjustment to drop or lens routine

Close review of comfort, hygiene, and adherence with the chosen tool. Small adjustments to the routine if needed; questions answered ahead of the next quarterly check.

Month 6

First major review

Mid-year refraction, biometry, and a check on the child's overall progress. Atropine dose or Ortho-K lens fit adjusted if the data calls for it.

Month 12

Full reassessment with axial-length re-measurement

Comparison of axial length against baseline tells us how much elongation the programme has prevented. Refraction, biometry, and a written summary follow.

Beyond

Continued through the teenage years

The programme continues until myopia stabilises — usually somewhere between 16 and the early twenties. After that, the conversation shifts to long-term correction options.

Meet your specialist

Care led by specialists you'll meet in person.

Dr. JD Ferwerda
Lead Ophthalmologist · Cataract and Retina Surgeon

Dr. JD Ferwerda, MD

Dr. JD Ferwerda, MD: Dutch-trained ophthalmologist specialising in cataracts, lens exchange, retinal disease, glaucoma, and AMD.

Book with Dr. JD See profile →
Dr. Artem Kozhechenkov
Refractive Surgeon

Dr. Artem Kozhechenkov, MD

Russian-trained refractive and general ophthalmologist, leads lasik/ laser vision correction at EEC

Book with Dr. Artem See profile →

Slowing what's still moving.

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