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February 18, 2025
Jesper Wiegandt
Optical leader ZEISS Vision Care has introduced MyoCare spectacle lenses to slow the progression of myopia. While these lenses are not yet available in the United States, they have been available in China since 2022 and also in Europe and Canada. According to study results released last year at ARVO, ZEISS MyoCare lenses significantly slowed myopia progression in both Asian and Caucasian children compared to ZEISS single vision lenses.
To find out what ZEISS has to offer in the field of myopia management for eye care professionals and their myopic patients throughout the world, Review of Myopia Management interviewed Chief Marketing Officer Jesper Wiegandt, and here is his take on the company’s role in slowing the progression of myopia worldwide.
RMM: What does the global rise in myopia signify for public health, and how is ZEISS positioned to lead innovative solutions and awareness efforts?
Jesper Wiegandt: At ZEISS, we are acutely aware of the global burden of myopia and its impact on people, both young and old. It is scary, and I think it is quite well known that in 2050, there will be nearly nine or 10 billion people on the planet, with 50% of them being myopic. Within that, probably as many as a billion people will be highly myopic, meaning that their issues are so significant that they cannot lead a normal life.
We have already seen firsthand the impact that myopia has on people’s ability to lead a normal and happy life. First, in China and across East Asia, we are seeing not only a huge increase in the number of children who are myopic but, more concerningly, in the severity of myopia as well. The double-edged sword is that not only are there more issues, but they are also bigger. If you visit any university in China or a Southeast Asian country, you will probably notice few students who do not wear glasses; they are probably the last generation who will not wear glasses. I find that quite scary.
Now, 2050 sounds as if it is a long time away, and therefore, one must be thinking that we have time for ‘something’ that ‘somebody’ can do to solve the issue. The short answer is that there is not really! The scary thing is that 2050 has already happened, and myopia is everywhere. Therefore, we at ZEISS are quite acutely aware that we have a role to play and a responsibility to provide solutions that can help the global community manage this condition. We have a responsibility, not only now, but well into the future because any child out there should not have to rely on the potluck of ‘Am I one of the two who didn’t get myopia?’ ‘Am I somebody for whom this won’t become severe?’
Fundamentally, for every single child out there that we catch in time, if we can delay the onset, and if we can slow the progression of myopia, we would not only be helping them but will also be supporting their parents by making sure that their child leads as normal, healthy, and seeing a life as possible. So, it is not just enough to say, okay, we are now aware of that. This knowledge on myopia comes with not only an opportunity but also the burden of responsibility. It is on us here at ZEISS to make sure that we support vision for a lifetime. Therefore, we cannot simply consider today’s solutions as sufficient. While they are helpful and wonderful, we need to look beyond them. This is an area where our progress cannot be fast enough. However, we need to make sure that we look at the experts for guidance, look at the data, look at the opportunities, and consider if we need to change what we are already doing and make it even better.
We, of course, will provide products, and our products are wonderful because they help the individual. But what we really need to provide are solutions because people similar to you and me are not going to meet the needs of a billion or more individuals. We learned a new term during COVID-19 called the ‘frontline’ staff. In many countries around the world, a decade or two ago, eye care practitioners probably saw their customers every two to three years. However, in various parts of the world, which are rapidly changing, they are likely to see 80% of their customers more frequently, sometimes seeing children as often as every three months. Now, this is clearly different. One went from being a peaceful and quiet practitioner to suddenly becoming a frontline staff. It is on us to develop the solutions that allow these practitioners and frontline staff to identify, help, manage, and support the people who have these real issues. And for that, of course, we can do our thing, and we must do our thing. But in addition to that, we will not do anything alone. We cannot do this alone. And quite possibly, this is the one thing that calls for partnerships; partnerships between us, between universities, between practitioners and the consumers themselves. At ZEISS, we are particularly proud to be part of the SPECS 2030 Initiative as set up by the WHO, where hopefully, we can contribute to making sure that the impact of our solutions is significant.
RMM: What are your efforts to create more awareness?
JW: First, it is evident that every one of us needs to do more when it comes to changing current practices. Because the trouble is, if you start too late, you simply do not catch things when you should. Let me make an analogy, as I am quite fond of them. If you wait to brush your teeth until you have your first cavity, you might just as well not bother. So early identification and early protection are key to absolutely everything.
Myopia control strategies are much better than they were 10 years ago because practitioners around the world are beginning to get their heads around how we do this and how we help people at the right time. But again, even the best of the practitioners cannot do much if people do not come to see them in time. So, that is obvious. When we look at our surveys, many parents everywhere, even in countries such as China, where the prevalence is high, lack the basic awareness of what they can do, when they should do it, and when to seek help.
There is no glamour in not asking for help. The worst that can happen is that one has a screening or an exam and is told that there is nothing and hence no need to worry. That would be wonderful! However, we still have major gaps in our awareness where people feel uncertain about what to do and if they should act. We document other issues, such as mental health and obesity, which are areas of major concern. I do not want to dwell on it, but at this point, it is just embarrassing that we do not do the same for eye health, and that is not good. We are aware of these issues, and people either choose to address them or not, but we recognize their existence. Eye health is not something that people talk about, even though WHO says that for the next 25 years, the biggest known health challenge the world will face is eye health. It is highly likely that there may and will be more significant health challenges between now and 2050. We do not know what they are. For example, COVID, nobody expected that! So, it is quite possible that there will be bigger health challenges. But presently, the most significant ‘known’ health challenge is eye health.
We know this already, but as we say, will politicians invest in preventing things? There are no votes for preventing stuff. This is also an equivalent saying, ‘Let me excite you about paying a bigger insurance premium.’ Nobody does that because insurance is not cool. Insurance is only cool the minute you realize you do not have it. It is the same with eye health unless we raise awareness among parents and say, ‘You can do something, and you must do something for your child’s eye health.’ Increasing awareness is key. The entire scenario resembles the ‘60s, when we learned to take care of our teeth. Now, we need to learn to take care of our eyes.
How do we help? We not only raise awareness but also support by providing appropriate information to practitioners on what they need to know. We say to the practitioners that they do not need to know everything: it is not about having a personal library. What matters is knowing where to find information. For example, there is the ZEISS Myopia Education Program on the ZEISS Myopia Insight Hub, where practitioners can find information on how best they manage eye health. Similarly, looking at other ways to learn and understand ways to treat, be it from webinars, special dedicated events, conferences, trade shows etc., we at ZEISS are in all of these because we say to you, the practitioner or the parent: You don’t need to know everything, but you do need to know that you can trust ZEISS to deliver that for you.
RMM: When did ZEISS start researching and engaging in the topic of myopia management? How has the topic grown within the company?
JW: Well, first off, it is a long history. We started more than 20 years ago working in the myopia field. At that time, we began with progressive lenses and peripheral defocus lenses because we knew then that in countries where the early signs of myopia were arising, we could make a difference with lenses. But what has changed since then, of course, is the myopia prevalence. Twenty years ago, the world looked very different, no pun intended. You would go into a Chinese university, and you would see many students without glasses. Today, it is next to impossible. So, as a consequence, myopia also takes up far more space in our planning. This is a significant part of what we do. It is a substantial part of our research efforts and capabilities. So, beyond the progressive lenses and the peripheral defocus lenses, we recently expanded our portfolio to launch a global product, ZEISS MyoCare lenses.
But that is not enough. We need to do much more. We are running multi-center trials across the world to make sure that we take into account different realities, different lifestyles, different races, different types of eye strain, etc. so that we know enough to make sure that we do not just have a solution and then say, ta-da, this is a panacea, but instead we have a portfolio of solutions that go with and beyond the lenses that we have today. For this, we have two significant efforts, one headed by Prof. Padmaja Sankaridurg, who is one of the leading myopia experts in the world. She is supported by a group of wonderful people, the ZEISS Global Myopia Advisory Board, who are all experts from across academia, industry, and practice who have all made it part of their life’s passion to help individuals not to suffer the worst of myopia, and they are helping make sure that we make choices so that we can make the biggest impact in the shortest possible time.
RMM: Are there any specific objectives for ZEISS when it comes to myopia management?
JW: There are, but I would start with the obligation rather than the objective. We have the capabilities. We have 180 years of history in developing optical systems. We know, we have the skills, we have the expertise. So, of course, we can also develop solutions for a problem or a challenge like this. Myopia is a lifetime condition. However, there is not a solution. One needs different solutions at different points in one’s life. Although it sounds trivial, our main objective is to help the individual achieve a lifetime of excellent eye care and great eye health. You did not want or choose to have myopia. This is something that simply happened to you. Our obligation is to help that one individual have a better life with better vision. Now, if you then extrapolate that from the one individual, of course, the obligation becomes an objective to help the world manage the pandemic of myopia.
There are two additional things that I want to emphasize. First, we want to be the preferred partner for all the eye care professionals out there. You need somebody you can rely on. I would love for the eye care professionals around the world to say ZEISS has your back. These eye care professionals will help us make sure that we make the right choices at the right time. Then, when an individual chooses a ZEISS practitioner or a ZEISS solution, it should not be just a pair of lenses they buy. This should be the entry ticket to a lifetime of excellent eye care from ZEISS.
RMM: How do you envision the role of technology in managing this condition?
JW: I am obviously not an optical professional, so when I first started learning about how ZEISS MyoCare lenses work, it was quite fascinating. I find it quite extraordinary that with a pair of well-designed lenses, you can significantly slow down the growth of a myopic eye. But of course, the lens is not just a pair of lenses we put on and then say, ta-da, are we not lucky? These are lenses that are precisely engineered and produced to the highest quality to make sure that your eye specifically receives the optimal signal to help manage myopia. However, there is room to improve, and we can, of course, optimize the long-term efficacy. This is what our team of experts is looking at. They look at different ways to enable performance and always focus on the individual.
The field is also exceptionally complicated because there are so many things to be aware of — be it the onset, progression, or consequences of myopia. It is quite apparent that in order for you, the practitioner, to do the best thing for your particular patient, technology in terms of measurement devices, tools, and efficacy metrics for monitoring is essential. This is really not a case of “Let me make a guess and hope for a great outcome.”
RMM: Does ZEISS have any plans to support and upskill practitioners?
JW: It is the other way around, which is that “every plan” we have around myopia is about supporting and upskilling the practitioners. I called practitioners’ frontline staff before. People such as you and me can only meet a limited number of individuals. We need the people who see the individuals with myopia. Millions of people will come, but they will come to the practitioners. Therefore, the starting point is that we must make sure that every practitioner out there feels supported, enabled, and confident in making sure that they can provide the proper treatment. So, the motivation to do just that is at the core of absolutely everything we do. Myopia and the understanding of myopia are evolving. New knowledge, new treatments, new solutions, and new methods are becoming available every day. So, of course, any practitioner needs continuous education and learning, and it is up to us to make sure that knowledge is transferred.
I already mentioned the ZEISS Myopia Education Program on Myopia Insights Hub. You, the practitioner, do not need to be a ZEISS customer to access it. This is to let you know that ZEISS is here to support you. We have the information; we need to make sure that the information and the enablement are available. Of course, we share this knowledge because it is not about running a business. A successful business in myopia is a consequence of doing the right thing, but everything we do in myopia has to start with that one individual, one child with myopia. We make a difference by slowing progression and severity or preventing onset so that the individual can lead as normal a life as possible. With that, hopefully, the world will see us as the experts we are so that they can rely on us to further the knowledge and its distribution and application. If we are lucky, who knows? That also then means a positive business for us, but fundamentally, it starts with doing the right thing for that one individual because then we have made a difference.
