Worldwide, children are developing myopia earlier in life which continues to worsen over time leading to additional visual impairment and sometimes blindness. While this trend of early, severe myopia progression started predominately in Asian countries, over the pandemic this phenomenon has been observed at greater rates worldwide.
Although myopia can be easily corrected with optical and surgical interventions, pathological myopia is known to increase the risk of eye diseases such as cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration, as well as, in severe cases, retinal detachment all of which cause large social and economic burdens.
Researchers at the University of Rochester have developed a novel contact lens and eyeglass designed to reduce, if not stop, myopia progression. A key concept of the invention relies on the proposed mechanism to slow down eye growth by desensitizing the peripheral visual system to differential changes in blur orientation in the peripheral visual field. We developed the new optical designs using a combination of multiple aberrations that increases depth of focus (DoF) and blur symmetry through focus.