May 23-28 is Myopia Awareness Week, a worldwide initiative to bring attention to this epidemic. From advancing research and innovation and sharing the Company’s expertise at international forums to developing key partnerships and more, EssilorLuxottica remains at the forefront to help promote education and understanding on how to best manage the challenges of myopia.

Five billion people could be myopic by 2050, making it one of the biggest threats facing vision. This means EssilorLuxottica must constantly innovate and prioritize global awareness and education on the importance of prevention, correction and protection of people’s vision around the world.

The Group’s continued focus on the importance of myopia management, highlights its dedication to providing breakthrough solutions for children to help slow down myopia progression and prevent high myopia in the future. Below are a few recent actions EssilorLuxottica has taken to advance myopia-focused research, and help drive awareness and education of myopia and the innovative solutions available.

New results presented at ARVO confirm Essilor Stellest™ lenses slow myopia
New research entitled “Progression of myopia with novel myopia control spectacle lenses” was recently presented to eye and vision scientists at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) in Denver. The one-year cross-over clinical trial led by Brien Holden Vision Institute in collaboration with Essilor R&D and Hai Yen Care Institute, Vietnam, evaluated the progression of myopia in 119 Vietnamese children wearing spectacle lenses with highly aspherical lenslets (HAL) versus standard single-vision lenses. In addition to confirming that HAL lenses slow myopia, the data indicates no rebound of myopia when children switch from HAL lenses to single vision lenses. Essilor Stellest™ lenses are based on the optical design of HAL lenses, and these results further support the effectiveness of our innovation.

The Essilor Research & Development team also presented key findings from the clinical trial conducted at WEIRC (Wenzhou Medical University – Essilor International Research Center). These findings highlighted that myopia control efficacy increased with wearing time for HAL lenses, demonstrating that compliance is important in myopia control. The second key outcome was that wearing HAL lenses eliminated the characteristic retinal shape changes associated with increasing myopia, indicating that they may provide an additional benefit.

Essilor Stellest™ lens results published in JAMA Ophthalmology
Medical journal, JAMA Ophthalmology, recently published the two-year clinical trial results for Essilor Stellest™ lenses, highlighting how the Company’s innovative lenses continue to demonstrate strong myopia control efficacy after two years. The results publication in JAMA Ophthalmology can be found here.

EAOO partnership reaffirmed
Reaffirming its strong partnership, EssilorLuxottica participated as a platinum sponsor of the European Academy of Optometry and Optics (EAOO)’s Vision Dublin 2022 industry conference. The Company’s keynote session featured internationally renowned myopia expert, Prof. Mark Bullimore, MCOptom, PhD, FAAO, where he discussed why each diopter matters in myopia control and compared myopia control outcomes in East Asian and European children. The Group also showcased its innovative Essilor Stellest^TM lenses and its clinical trial results, and hosted a booth for attendees to discover useful Essilor instruments for day-to-day practice.

Find out more about how EssilorLuxottica is tackling myopia through global partnerships here.