Why Myopia Matters
By Millicent Knight, OD, FAAO, FAARM, Senior Vice President Customer Development, Essilor of America
Nearly half of all Americans suffer from myopia, and while many practitioners are aware of the rising rate of myopia in places like east Asia, many may not know there has been a dramatic increase in this condition in the United States over the last 10 years. Myopia is more than a refractive condition that causes annoyingly blurry vision, and it can impact the lives of patients who are affected.
As eye care professionals and subject matter experts on myopia, you know how important clear comfortable vision is, especially to a child. Now, Essilor wants to increase awareness because we know that myopia is about more than clear vision. The risk for retinal pathologies and other ocular diseases increases tenfold for patients who do become high myopes. At Essilor, we believe everyone in the eye care community has a role to play.
Why You Should Care
As an ECP, myopia can now be treated as a standard of care, considering your patients’ quality of life and how to actively manage myopia vs. simply treating it.
By treating the condition the way it’s been considered in the past, you might make only a small difference in a patient’s vision. However, by managing myopia in a different way, we may be able to reduce their degree of blur when uncorrected, which improves their quality of life. This small change makes a big impact on your patient.
Why Essilor Cares
To fulfill our commitment of eradicating poor vision in one generation, we must address the unprecedented growth of myopia in this country. That’s why Essilor has created an awareness campaign to help parents recognize the signs of myopia and direct them to get a comprehensive eye exam from an ECP. Your patients count on you to have the knowledge and information surrounding the latest research, trends and solutions for myopia care to help them make an informed decision. If you’re not on the path to becoming a myopia expert, you risk losing them to someone who is. So join us as we take on one of the most prevalent eye conditions in the world and help make the difference for your patients. Because we believe everyone deserves to see well.