Science: Keratomileusis for myopia in children

  Summer vacation into nearly half, parents in addition to myopic children to replace the frame glasses, there are many people to children choose a direct contact with the cornea and the plastic lens. A mother of a child undergoing an eye test told reporters: “When my child was in the third grade, he wore glasses for only one year, and his myopia jumped from 200 degrees when he was first fitted with glasses to more than 400 degrees. After wearing keratomileusis, myopia has not increased and I can basically see clearly without glasses during the day. Now during the summer vacation, I am worried that my child’s glasses will grow again during the holiday watching TV, so I brought my child to the optometry examination and was surprised to find that my child’s prescription did not grow.”  What are keratomileusis?  The so-called keratoplasty lens is a special high oxygen permeable rigid keratoplasty lens designed according to the myopic patient’s corneal geometry and refractive error, using the night wearing correction method, after taking the lens during the day to obtain good naked eye vision. In general, myopia up to 600 degrees can be improved or controlled in about a week. These keratoplasty lenses are effective in controlling myopia in adolescents, especially those under the age of 18 who are developing myopia too rapidly. With its high oxygen permeability material, there is no damage to the cornea, making it an extremely safe product.  The keratoplasty lens originated in the United States, and after 50 years of development, it has been used in 34 countries worldwide; it is a special inverse geometric design of keratoplasty lens, whose inner surface is composed of several arc segments. The uneven distribution of the lens and the tear layer, the resulting hydrodynamic effect changes the geometry of the cornea, worn in front of the cornea during sleep, gradually flattening the curvature of the cornea and shortening the eye axis, thus effectively stopping the development of myopia, known as “sleep can control and correct myopia technology”.  Of course, rigid gas permeable corneas are not suitable for everyone. First of all, contact lenses should not be worn during colds, fevers, eye inflammation and eye diseases such as glaucoma. Secondly, it does not treat the root cause of myopia and can also cause vision to rebound after stopping wear. However, because keratoplasty does not change the structure of the cornea, it offers an opportunity for future treatment of myopia in adolescents, and is currently an effective way to stop the growth of myopia in adolescents.  In addition, there is an age limit. Children in the age range of 8-18 years old are most suitable for wearing keratoplasty lenses, because this age group is under pressure to study, has a high intensity of eye use, develops myopia faster, has more opportunities to participate in various sports, and is also prone to some accidental injuries, including those caused by frame glasses. The advantage of keratoconus is that it slows the growth of myopia and allows for the removal of the lenses during the day. Children over the age of 8 are more capable of understanding, communicating and taking care of themselves, and since they are younger and have lower prescriptions, the earlier they wear them, the more effective they are. Therefore, 8-18 years old is the best age to wear keratoplasty lenses.  Many parents tend to think that there is no difference between wearing these glasses and having contact lenses. In fact, it is very different. Strictly speaking, keratomileusis is actually a medical device that requires thorough examination before being worn. The fitting of keratoplasty lenses is subject to 18 precision examinations, including visual acuity, corneal topography, computerized optometry, non-contact intraocular pressure measurement, anterior segment panorama, comprehensive computerized optometry, fundus examination and so on. The keratoplasty lens wearing process takes nearly 3 hours from the full diagnosis and free trial fitting. One of the mandatory tests is the dilated pupil. This is to rule out pseudomyopia. Because pseudomyopia is treated, the child is completely free of glasses, while non-medical institutions only have a few optometry procedures, which are very unscientific and unsafe.