Myopia Control
Contact Lenses
Soft daily disposable lenses with a myopia control design built in. Your child sees clearly with no glasses on, and throws the lenses away each evening.
Do contact lenses slow myopia in children?
Specially designed soft contact lenses do. Dual-focus and multifocal myopia control lenses have rings of extra plus power around a clear centre. In a three-year trial of a dual-focus daily disposable lens, children progressed about half as much as those in standard lenses. Ordinary single-vision contact lenses do not slow myopia.
- Lens type
- Soft daily disposable
- Wear
- 10 or more hours, 6 days a week
- Typical age
- 8 and above
- Average slowing
- About half
Two Focal Points in One Soft Lens
The centre of the lens corrects distance vision. Around it sit alternating rings, some with the distance power and some with added plus power. The plus rings place part of the image in front of the retina, which acts as a brake on eye growth, while the brain uses the sharp distance image to see.
Dual-focus designs such as MiSight were built for this purpose. Some soft multifocal lenses made for adults are also used for myopia control.
Ready for Contact Lenses?
Choose an age and preferences to see whether daytime lenses are a good fit.
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Myopia control glasses
Read how it works and who it suits.
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Low-dose atropine drops
Read how it works and who it suits.
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Orthokeratology (overnight lenses)
Read how it works and who it suits.
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Daytime control contact lenses
Read how it works and who it suits.
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Outdoor time and screen habits
Read how it works and who it suits.
General guidance from published research. Suitability is confirmed at an assessment.
Signs a Child Can Manage Lenses
Age matters less than maturity. Children as young as 8 handle daily lenses well when they are motivated.
- Keeps hands clean without being reminded every time
- Wants the lenses, often for sport, dance or confidence
- Will tell an adult straight away if an eye is red or sore
- A parent can supervise the first few weeks
Glasses power changed again this year? An assessment shows how fast it is moving and what can slow it.
Daily Disposables Keep the Risk Low
A fresh sterile pair each morning removes the cleaning step where most problems begin. The remaining rules: no sleeping in the lenses, no swimming or showering in them, and no wear on a day when an eye is red. A back-up pair of glasses is always needed.
For overnight wear instead, see orthokeratology.
Check the Power Range
Drag to your child's prescription to see the band it falls in.
Myopia band
Clear without glasses up to about …
Move the slider to see what the number means.
- Phone 30 cm
- Book 40 cm
- Laptop 60 cm
- TV 3 m
- Class board 5 m
- Road sign 20 m
Based on simple optics: the furthest clear distance is one metre divided by the power. Astigmatism and age change the real-world result.
Treatments
Questions Families Ask
At what age can a child wear contact lenses?
Are myopia control contact lenses better than glasses?
Do normal contact lenses slow myopia?
How long are the lenses worn each day?
Find Out Where the Power Is Heading
A myopia assessment measures the current power, checks how the eyes focus and work together, and sets out the options that fit. In clinic in Chennai and Hyderabad, with online consultations across India.