July 3, 2025
Photo Credit: Getty Images
SYDNEY, Australia — The International Myopia Institute (IMI) announced the publication of its latest consensus editorial, “Myopia Correction, Myopia Control, and Myopia Management: Definitions and Recommended Usage.”
Now available on Open Access in Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS), this editorial serves as a gateway to the 2025 IMI White Paper series, giving long-needed clarity to foundational terminology used in clinical, research and regulatory settings.
With the increasing prevalence of myopia worldwide, consistency in terminology is critical. Confusion, whether between “correction,” “control,” or “management,” can complicate communication among practitioners, researchers, regulators and patients. This editorial aims to resolve ambiguity by offering clear, distinct definitions for each key term.
Key Definitions
The editorial defines myopia correction, control and management as follows:
-
- Myopia Correction refers to optical devices or interventions (e.g., spectacles, contact lenses, refractive surgery) that restore best-corrected visual acuity, without any intended impact on slowing myopia progression.
- Myopia Control is a more targeted approach involving interventions specifically designed to slow myopia progression and axial elongation. It often includes treatment efficacy monitoring and carries specific regulatory significance in many countries.
- Myopia Management denotes a comprehensive, evidence-based care model, including risk assessment, timely correction, lifestyle recommendations, myopia control interventions and ongoing monitoring, to prevent or reduce progression and manage long-term complications throughout life.
“We consulted a broad range of stakeholders and carefully defined these terms to support clarity between conventional correction and active intervention. Myopia management requires clinically supervised plans that address each patient’s risk factors and long-term eye health,” said Prof. Ian Flitcroft, lead author and IMI taskforce member. “Myopia correction techniques and control interventions are essential pieces of the overarching goal to manage myopia, which is a holistic, evidence-based approach incorporating lifestyle recommendations, risk assessments and lifelong care of emerging complications.”
To foster consistency and improve patient care globally, the IMI encourages eye care professionals and industry partners to adopt these definitions in their work.
The editorial is now freely available from Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science and at myopiainstitute.org. Readers are encouraged to consult it directly to support evidence-based communication and long-term myopia management strategies.
