What is Myopia?
Myopia—also called short-sightedness—happens when light from distant objects focuses in front of the retina rather than directly on it. This makes far-away things look blurred while near objects remain clear, usually because the eye has grown longer than normal for its focusing power.
For many people, the main issue is inconvenience: relying on glasses or contact lenses can feel limiting. However, higher degrees of myopia—associated with greater eye elongation—increase the risk of serious problems such as retinal detachment, glaucoma, and myopic maculopathy.
MYOPIA MANAGEMENT
Myopia management is becoming a key part of children’s eyecare. Less time outdoors, having a short-sighted parent, or doing lots of close-up work can all cause the eyes to grow longer and become more short-sighted (myopic).
Incidence of Myopia
Myopia currently affects about 2.6 billion people worldwide—roughly 22% of the global population—and is projected to rise to 4.9 billion by 2050, approaching 50% of people.
In both the UK and the USA, more than half of adolescents are short-sighted, and the prevalence continues to climb each year.
Beyond the day-to-day lifestyle impact, this growing burden is expected to strain healthcare services, as more adults develop eye diseases associated with unusually elongated eyes.
After The Eye Examination
Genetics. Your likelihood of developing myopia is higher if one or both parents are short-sighted,* yet the worldwide surge in myopia is happening too quickly to be explained by genetics alone.
* Compared with a child whose parents are not myopic.
When both parents are myopic, a child is about 8× more likely to be myopic by age 12.
