Two Myopia Control Contact Lens Designs Demonstrate Myopia Slowing Efficacy

Extended depth of focus and dual focus contact lenses demonstrate similar efficacy in slowing myopia, according to a study published in Ophthalmic and Physiological Optics. 

Researchers enrolled 95 children with myopia (mean [SD] age, 10.8 years; mean [SD] spherical equivalent refractive error [SE], −1.99 [0.68] diopters [D]; mean [SD] axial length [AL], 24.6 [0.8] mm) in a prospective, randomized, contralateral, cross-over study and randomly assigned them to 1 of 3 treatment methods including bilateral single vision (SV) contact lenses (CL; group 1; n=30), an extended depth of focus (EDOF) CL with a SVCL in the contralateral eye (group 2; n=31), or a dual focus CL with a SVCL in the contralateral eye (group 3; n=34). Group 2 and group 3 participants crossed over after 6 months of wear, switching the myopia control lens with the SVCL, and wore the lens for an additional 6 months. Participants underwent SE and AL measurements at baseline, 6-months, and  1-year assessments.

Investigators report that group I participants progressed similarly in both eyes with respect to SE (−0.41 OU) and AL (OD, 0.12 mm; OS, 0.13 mm) at 6-month follow-up with no significant paired differences for SE or AL change (P =.85 and P =.48, respectively). 

Myopia progression was slower among eyes fit with myopia control CLs compared with eyes fit with SVCLs in both groups 2 and 3 at 6-month follow-up. Paired differences were similar between the groups for both SE and AL, demonstrating less change for eyes fit with EDOF (SE: 39%; AL: 63%) and dual focus lenses (SE: 41%; AL: 48%).   

Paired differences for SE and AL in group 1 participants remained insignificant at 1-year follow-up (P =.27 and P =.64, respectively). Patients fit with both myopia control designs experienced slowed SE progression and AL growth in the treatment eye, while these parameters increased in the contralateral eye following crossover. Despite this increase in progression rate, values did not exceed those observed in the SVCL group.

Investigators note that discontinuation was high among all 3 groups, but not different (33.3%, 48.4% and 50% for groups 1 to 3, respectively; P =.19) and most discontinuations occurred immediately after baseline.

Researchers note similarities in the myopia slowing efficacy between both myopia control designs and state, “[m]ost eyes responded to the anti-myopigenic stimulus imparted by these lenses, and furthermore, upon discontinuation, the progression was similar to that with conventional single-vision CL.”

Study limitations include a high dropout rate and failure to measure accommodation.