A range of approaches to myopia management, including behavioural, optical, illumination, and pharmacological strategies, are being actively studied and increasingly adopted in clinical practice. However, there is still no standardized global approach for managing young premyopic or myopic patients, and access to interventions varies widely across regions. Previous global surveys in 2015, 2019, and 2022 showed that despite strong practitioner concern and reported engagement in myopia control, most young progressing myopes continue to be prescribed single vision corrections. This latest paper presents updated findings from the 2024–25 IMI Global Survey on attitudes and management practices for myopia in clinical care worldwide.

The survey collected responses from just under 3,000 eye care practitioners. Analysis covered five continents, with the majority of respondents being optometrists and ophthalmologists as in previous surveys. Concern about the rising prevalence of childhood myopia remains high across all regions, with the strongest concern reported in Asia. Reported clinical activity in myopia management has continued its steady rise over the past decade, with combination therapy and orthokeratology perceived to be the most effective interventions.

Despite this, single vision spectacles remain the most commonly prescribed option (18 to 39 percent across continents), followed by contact lenses (2 to 11 percent). Encouragingly, their use is slowly declining, with prescribing of single vision spectacles decreasing by 11.1 percent since 2015. At the same time, uptake of myopia control specific interventions has increased, including myopia control spectacles (14 to 23 percent), soft contact lenses (3 to 16 percent), orthokeratology (3 to 10 percent), and atropine therapy (4 to 22 percent, predominantly at 0.01 concentration).

Globally, cost to the patient continues to be cited as the primary barrier to prescribing myopia interventions. The survey also indicates that delivering myopia management is associated with improved practitioner job satisfaction and increased patient loyalty.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This IMI White Paper was summarised by corresponding author Prof James Wolffsohn DSc PhD, MBA, BSc. A full list of the IMI taskforce members and the complete IMI white papers can be found at myopiainstitute.org. The publication and translation costs of the clinical summary was supported by donations from the BHVI, ZEISS, Essilorluxottica, CooperVision, Alcon, HOYA, Théa, and Oculus.

REFERENCE

Whayeb Y, Wolffsohn JS, Logan NS, Santodomingo-Rubido J and the International Myopia Institute ambassador group. IMI-global trends in myopia management attitudes and strategies in clinical practice – a nine-year review. Contact Lens and Anterior Eye. 2025:102492.

CORRESPONDENCE

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