Atropine 0.01% Eye Drops for Myopia Control in American Children: A Multiethnic Sample Across Three US Sites

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Pediatric Ophthalmology
• Myopia Control

Background:

• Previous studies in East Asia indicated that low-concentration topical atropine eye drops can slow myopia progression.
• This research investigated the efficacy of atropine 0.01% eye drops in managing myopia progression within a diverse pediatric population in the United States.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effect of adding nightly atropine 0.01% eye drops to standard care on myopia progression in children aged 6-15 years.
• To assess the rate of myopia progression and the incidence of clinically significant myopia worsening in a multiethnic cohort.

Main Methods:

• A multicenter retrospective case-control study involving 198 children (ages 6-15) with myopia.
• Children treated with atropine 0.01% nightly for at least one year were compared to age- and baseline refraction-matched controls.
• Primary endpoint: average spherical equivalent refraction (SER) progression at 1, 1.5, and 2 years; Secondary endpoint: percentage of subjects with SER increase > -0.75 D.

Main Results:

• Atropine group (n=100) and control group (n=98) had similar baseline SERs ( -3.1±1.9 D vs -2.8±1.6 D).
• The atropine group showed significantly less SER increase at year 1 (-0.2±0.8 D vs -0.6±0.4 D) and year 2 (-0.3±1.1 D vs -1.2±0.7 D) (p<0.001).
• At year 2, 37% of the atropine group experienced significant myopia worsening (> -0.75 D) compared to 80% in the control group (p<0.001). No major safety issues were reported.

Conclusions:

• Topical atropine 0.01% eye drops demonstrated significant efficacy in reducing myopia progression in a US pediatric cohort over two years.
• Findings are consistent with previous research from East Asian studies, supporting atropine 0.01% as a viable myopia control option for diverse populations.