Juvenile Myopia

Juvenile Myopia is a sight defect which causes the far-field vision to be blurred, while near-field sight can be good.

In the normal (emmetropic) eye, the light rays from distant objects are focused exactly on the retina. However, in the myopic eye these same rays fall before the retina and then diverge: a blurred image therefore forms on the retinal surface.

Myopia appears at school age, increases over the age and tends to stabilise around 20-25 years. It has both genetic causes (if one or both parents are myopic it is more likely that the children will also be) and causes related to lifestyle.

Over recent years, a closer correlation between myopia and lifestyle has also been discovered. In fact, children who spend too much time in closed environments, looking at screens from close by (using computers, tablets and smartphones) have a higher risk of developing it and have a faster progression.

Read More