[Differences in the progression of myopic correction in patients with corrective eyeglasses in comparison with correction with contact lenses]

The authors compare the increment of values of myopis correction in 100 patients with bilateral myopia above -3 d corrected by glasses with a similar group of 100 myopic patients where for correction mostly sift contact lenses were used. In both groups adults and children and youth were compared separately. The groups were selected at random from the registers of two departments. In the course of five years in the group of patients under 20 years of age who wore glasses there was a more marked increase of values of myopic correction, as compared with the control group which wore contact lenses. On prescription of glasses the weakest correction was recommended which enabled the subjects to read line 1.0 of Snellen's optotypes. Patients with contact lenses were corrected according to the assessed refraction. The mean progression in young patients wearing glasses in five years was -1.66 d, for contact lenses -0.85 d. In both groups of myopic patients above 25 years (glasses and contact lenses) after five years in one third of the patients an average progression of -1.0 d was recorded. The authors conclude that "subcorrection" of myopic patients, still recommended in many departments, does not slow down the progression of myopia. The results of the investigation justify full correction of the defect in particular in younger patients where due to elasticity of the lens accommodation to close objects works perfectly.