Soft contact lenses safe for myopia control in children
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Researchers found low complication rates in children wearing soft contact lenses for myopia management, according to a study published in Ophthalmic & Physiological Optics.
“The efcacy of myopia control soft contact lenses (SCLs) to slow the progression of myopia has been demonstrated in a number of clinical trials to date,” Robin L. Chalmers, OD, FAAO, clinical trial consultant, and colleagues wrote. “Despite well-established information on the safety of SCLs in adults, the rate of serious adverse events with SCL use in this younger age group has not been widely studied, since there was no specific indication for their use in the pediatric population before the introduction of myopia control soft contact lenses.”
In a retrospective review, researchers analyzed clinical charts from 962 children 8 to 12 years old to investigate the safety and prevalence of adverse events associated with SCL wear (60% first fitted with daily disposable SCLs). The study encompassed 2,713 years of wear and 4,611 contact lens visits; researchers observed patients for an average of 2.8 years and up to 7.6 years.
Study results yielded 122 potential ocular adverse events in 12.2% of SCL wearers. Researchers observed an annualized rate of 0.66% per year (95% CI, 0.39-1.05) for noninfectious inflammatory adverse events and an annualized rate of 0.48% per year (95% CI, 0.25-0.82) for contact lens papillary conjunctivitis; researchers also found two presumed cases of microbial keratitis. The combined annualized rate of microbial keratitis incidence and inflammatory adverse events was 0.74% per year. The current findings are slightly lower compared to previously reported study results.
“Much of the safety discussion amongst myopia control researchers promotes the potential long-term safety implications of reduced retinal disease and other sight-threatening ocular abnormalities if higher levels of myopia can be avoided, although it may be difficult for families and eye care practitioners to imagine that far into the future,” Chalmers and colleagues concluded. “The results of the current study help to answer parents’ and practitioners’ concerns about the risk:benet of real-world SCL use in children and young teens and assure the relative safety of SCL use in this age group.”
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