The Combined Effect of Low-dose Atropine with Orthokeratology in Pediatric Myopia Control: Review of the Current Treatment Status for Myopia

Abstract

Pediatric myopia has become a major international public health concern. The prevalence of myopia has undergone a significant increase worldwide. The purpose of this review of the current literature was to evaluate the peer-reviewed scientific literature on the efficacy and safety of low-dose atropine treatment combined with overnight orthokeratology for myopia control. A search was conducted in Pubmed and Web of Science with the following search strategy: (atropine OR low-dose atropine OR 0.01% atropine) AND (orthokeratology OR ortho-k) AND (myopia control OR myopia progression). All included studies improved myopia control by the synergistic effect of orthokeratology with low-dose atropine, compared with orthokeratology treatment alone. All studies included a short or medium follow-up period; therefore longer-term studies are necessary to validate these results.