Vanderbilt University is one of 10 sites selected by the Pediatric Eye Disease Investigator Group to be part of a study to determine the effectiveness of atropine drops in slowing the progression of myopia. Participants will be randomly assigned to daily atropine or placebo for 24 months, followed by six months off treatment.
Lori Ann Kehler, OD, assistant professor of ophthalmology and division chief of optometry at Vanderbilt, says, “There is a lot of interest in this particular study. If using these drops works, it will completely change our practice and the ability to impact a child’s vision for their lifetime.”
According to a news article from Vanderbilt, the U.S. trial is based on the positive outcomes of recent studies, which determined that atropine eye drops decreased the progression of myopia in Asia. “In the Asian studies, the use of a lower dose was effective in slowing the progression of myopia. It was a totally unexpected result and gives us a lot of enthusiasm for its success as an option for treatment,” Dr. Kehler says.
Click here to read more from WO on myopia control.
