Spectacles, Contact Lenses or OrthoK? Choosing the Right Myopia Control Option for Your Child

There’s no single “best” myopia control option. Spectacle lenses, contact lenses, orthokeratology (OrthoK) and atropine eye drops are all backed by clinical evidence, and the right choice depends on your child’s individual assessment rather than any one product. Parents often ask us which one is best; here’s how the options actually compare, and how we help you choose.

The Main Myopia Control Options

• Spectacle lenses — including MiYOSMART IQ, Stellest 2.0, Zeiss MyoCare and SightGlass Vision’s DOT lens
• Contact lenses — MiSight 1 day, a soft daily disposable lens
• Orthokeratology (OrthoK) — rigid lenses worn overnight that reshape the cornea
• Atropine eye drops — Ryjunea, the first treatment of this kind licensed in the UK

We cover each of these in more detail in their own posts, linked throughout this document.

Comparing the Evidence

Each option has been tested in its own clinical trials, generally against standard single vision lenses or a placebo. It’s worth being upfront about something important: these figures come from separate studies with different designs, populations and follow-up periods, so they shouldn’t be read as a direct head-to-head ranking. A higher number in one trial doesn’t mean that option is automatically more effective for your child.

Option	Progression reduction	Source / notes
MiYOSMART iQ	65% (4–6 age group, 12-month data)	vs. single vision lenses
Stellest 2.0	71%	2-year RCT vs. single vision lenses
Zeiss MyoCare	34–77%	range across studies; varies by population and duration
SightGlass Vision DOT	73–75%	CYPRESS/CATHAY trials; different mechanism (contrast management, not defocus)
MiSight 1 day	59%	3-year trial vs. single vision 1-day lens
Orthokeratology	~45% (41–55%)	meta-analysis; effect varies with treatment duration
Atropine (Ryjunea)	30% (>50% in fast progressors)	Phase 3 STAR trial vs. placebo, over 2 years

Which Might Suit Your Child Better?

In practice, the choice rarely comes down to the headline statistics alone. We take into account your child’s age, how quickly their prescription and axial length are changing, their lifestyle (sport, swimming, screen use), and simple practicalities like whether they can manage a contact lens or would rather not. Being independent means we’re not tied to recommending one product over another — the assessment drives the recommendation.

Why We Offer Every Major Myopia Management Option

We’re an independent practice, not tied to any single manufacturer. That matters in practice, not just in principle: it means our recommendation is built around your child’s assessment results, not around which product we happen to stock most of. If MiYOSMART IQ suits your child better than Stellest 2.0, SightGlass Vision’s DOT lens suits them better than a defocus-based option, or a contact lens suits them better than any spectacle option, that’s what we’ll say — we have no reason to steer you otherwise.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which myopia control lens is best?

There’s no single “best” option that suits every child — MiYOSMART, Stellest, Zeiss MyoCare, MiSight, orthokeratology and atropine drops are all evidence-based, and which suits your child depends on their individual assessment.

Is myopia control worth it?

For a child with progressive myopia, slowing that progression can meaningfully reduce their long-term risk of complications like retinal detachment and myopic macular degeneration in adulthood. We discuss the evidence and the likely benefit for your specific child at assessment.

What age can myopia control start?

There’s no single fixed age — we start as soon as our clinical team identifies that a child’s myopia and/or axial length is progressing, taking into account family history, age of onset and speed of progression.

Craig McArthur’s Clinical Opinion

“Parents understandably want a straight answer to ‘which is best,’ and I understand why review articles that rank products by a single percentage are tempting to write. In thirteen years of running our myopia clinic, the cases that go well are the ones where we matched the option to the child, not the child to whichever product we’re most used to reaching for. That’s the whole reason we offer this many options rather than just one. The best product is the one that will for your child and your child’s lifestyle” — Craig McArthur, Optometrist and Director

Book a Myopia Assessment

To talk through which option might suit your child, book a myopia assessment, email Craig McArthur, or call the practice on 0141 943 3300.

Call us: 0141 943 3300
Visit our clinic in Bearsden, Glasgow

Learn more at www.myopiascotland.co.uk