Delegates attending the second annual Myopia Progression in Children (MPIC) conference have rated it 4.9 out of 5 stars, commending its concise presentations and range of case studies.
Sydney-based paediatric ophthalmologist Dr Loren Rose, who founded Myopia Australia in 2022, and planned the organisation’s second MPIC conference, said more than 50 delegates attended and contributed to discussion.
“There was excellent interaction with industry and presenters, robust discussion, and excellent questions. Feedback included how relevant and helpful the conference was, and how many points were easily incorporated into clinical practice,” she said.
The conference focused on discussions about myopia in Australia in the context of the worldwide prevalence and increase in incidence.
“It is forecast high myopia will increase in Australia four-fold from 2020 to over four million in 2050, and a three-fold increase in New Zealand to over 200,000,” Rose said.
She said an important message repeated throughout the conference was that both connective tissue disease and retinal dystrophies are associated with progressive myopia in children, and a high myope with poor best-corrected vision may require electrophysiology for retinal disease.
An overview of current refractive intervention was presented, including a detailed explanation of peripheral defocus lenses with current published research, including HOYA’s Defocus Incorporated Multiple Segments (D.I.M.S.) technology and Essilor’s highly aspherical lenslets (HAL), the recent release of Rodenstock’s Mycon and Zeiss’s soon-to-be-released MyoCare design.
Early studies of Diffusion Optics Technology (DOT) from SightGlass Vision, and contact lens dual design, MiSight (Coopervision), and orthokeratology was also discussed.
An overview of current pharmacological intervention was presented, including a summary of the ATOM and LAMP studies, as well as Australian data on progression with low-dose atropine.
“Evidence that children can be fast progressors at any age and will respond to low-dose atropine has been again demonstrated recently in the CHAMP study overseas,” Rose said.
“Research has demonstrated that choroidal thickness is an early indicator of treatment effectiveness. Recent publications of repeat low-level red light may have a significant effect in retarding the elongation of the eye in myopia progression, which is being assessed for TGA in Australia.”
Dr Loren Rose and guest speakers Dr Trent Sandercoe, Dr Shanel Sharma, Ms Mariella Coluccio and Ms Homma Ebrahimi each presented two difficult case studies as part of an open-forum troubleshooting discussion, with delegates complimenting the session’s engaging content.
More reading
Myopia Progression in Children Conference by Dr Loren Rose returning mid-2023
Red light therapy device to feature at Myopia Progression in Children Conference 2023
Choroid thinning in myopia on agenda at MPIC 2023
