A Randomized Trial of the Effect of Soft Contact Lenses on Myopia Progression in Children

¹ College of Optometry, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, United States
² College of Optometry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, United States
³ New England College of Optometry, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
⁴ Ohio State University College of Optometry, Columbus, Ohio, United States

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: walline.1{at}osu.edu.

	Abstract

Purpose. Soft contact lenses have been reported to increase myopia progression. The purpose of this study is to determine whether soft contact lenses affect myopia progression in children. Methods. Children between the ages of 8 and 11 years with -1.00 D to -6.00 D myopia and less than 1.00 D astigmatism were randomly assigned to wear soft contact lenses (n = 247) or spectacles (n = 237) for three years. Refractive error and corneal curvatures were measured annually by cycloplegic autorefraction, and axial length was measured annually by a-scan ultrasound. Multilevel modeling was used to compare the rate of change of refractive error, corneal curvature, and axial length between spectacle and contact lens wearers. Results. There was a statistically significant interaction between time and treatment for myopia progression (p = 0.002); the average rate of change was 0.06 D per year greater for contact lens wearers than spectacle wearers. After three years, the adjusted difference between contact lens wearers and spectacle wearers was not statistically significant (95% confidence interval (CI) = -0.46, 0.02). There was no difference between the two treatment groups with respect to change in axial length (ANCOVA, p = 0.37) or change in steep corneal curvature (ANCOVA, p = 0.72). Conclusions. These data provide reassurance to eye care practitioners concerned with the phenomenon of "myopic creep." Soft contact lens wear by children does not cause clinically relevant increases axial length, corneal curvature, or myopia relative to spectacle lens wear.

Key Words: myopia, contact lenses, children-s vision, clinical trial

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