Effect of Duration of Spectacle Lenses With Highly Aspherical Lenslets Wear on Choroidal Thickness in Low-Hyperopic Chinese Children.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of spectacle lenses with highly aspherical lenslets (HALs) in children with low hyperopia, focusing on their impact on choroidal thickness (ChT) and axial length (AL) elongation.

METHODS

A single-center, randomized, controlled trial was conducted from August 2022 to September 2023, involving children aged 6 to 9 years with spherical equivalent ranging from +0.00 to +2.00 diopters (D). Participants were randomly assigned to either a single-vision lens (SVL) group or a HAL spectacle lens group. AL and ChT were measured at baseline, 1 month, and 12 months. ChT changes were analyzed with average weekly wearing time of spectacle lenses and 12-month AL elongation.

RESULTS

A total of 84 children (44 in the SVL group and 40 in the HAL group) completed the 12-month follow-up visit and were included in the analysis. There was no significant change in mean ChT from baseline in either group (both P > 0.05). However, there was a positive correlation between weekly lens wearing time (38.6 ± 18.5 hours) and subfoveal ChT change (325.0 ± 37.1 µm) in the HAL group (R2 = 0.46, P < 0.0001), which was inversely correlated with axial elongation (0.19 mm; interquartile range, 0.12-0.27; R2 = 0.13; P = 0.004). In contrast, no significant correlations were observed in the SVL group.

CONCLUSIONS

No significant differences were observed between HAL and single-vision spectacles in AL or ChT change. However, HAL spectacle lenses influenced AL elongation and subfoveal ChT with a dose-dependent effect related to lens wearing time in low hyperopic Chinese children.

TRANSLATIONAL RELEVANCE: Spectacle lenses with highly aspherical lenslets slow axial elongation by modulating choroidal thickness in low-hyperopic children.