While it is scientifically accepted that contact lenses will not cause myopia to worsen, another pertinent question is whether they can reduce the rate of myopic progression or even reverse it altogether.

The question has been the focus of much scrutiny, debate and controversy for a number of years and recently the US National Eye Institute undertook a detailed research project entitled 'The Contact Lens and Myopia Progression (CLAMP) Study' in an effort to establish the truth in the matter.

148 children in the age range 8 to 11 who had short-sightedness were asked to wear prescribed contact lenses. The 116 who were able to adapt to wearing them were given either soft contact lenses or gas permeable lenses (rigid plastic lenses that allow for the transmission of oxygen to the eye). Like the ACHIEVE study, CLAMP lasted for a three year period.

The researchers concluded that the children who wore the gas permeable lenses did experience a slowdown in their myopic progression although the rate was too small to be of significance in terms of choosing these types of lenses above the soft lens equivalents.

There was also no certainty that the decline in rate of myopic progression was permanent.

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Can contact lenses cause eyesight to deteriorate?