Research Programs

• Amblyopia Treatment
• Evaluation of Keratoconus (CLEK)
• Convergence Insufficiency Treatment (CITT)
• Correction of Myopia (COMET)
• Correction of Myopia (COMET2)
• Myopia in COMET Children (COSMICC)
• IVI Research
• Molecular Mechanisms
• Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study (OHTS)
• Vision Screening in Preschoolers

The Correction of Myopia Evaluation Trial (COMET)

Principal Investigator, Mitchell Scheiman, OD
Co-Investigator, Kathleen McCarthy, OD
Consulting OD: JoAnn Bailey, OD
Study Coordinator, Abby Grossman
Back-Up Coordinator: Melissa Madigan-Carr
Optician, Jeffrey Miles
Funded by the National Eye Institute

Myopia: The optical condition in which only rays from a finite distance from the eye focus on the retina. Also known as nearsightedness.

The Correction of Myopia Evaluation Trial (COMET) is a long-term, multi-center study investigating whether progressive additional lenses (PAL’s) slow the progression of juvenile-onset myopia, as compared to conventional single vision lenses. The project is a double-masked, randomized study performed with 450 children with myopia (-1.25 D to –4.50 D) in both eyes, 6.0 – 12.0 years old, with good visual acuity and who meet specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. They were identified from schools and clinical sites in the Boston, Birmingham, Houston, and Philadelphia metropolitan areas¹. Eligible children whose parents agreed to their participation were randomized to wearing multi-focal progressive addition lenses (treated group) or conventional single vision lenses (control group). All children are followed for at least 3 years for changes in refractive error; they are seen every six months for the duration of the study. The study endpoint is progression of myopia, as measured by cyclopegic autorefraction. Endpoint measures will be obtained by masked examiners.

The primary aim of the trial is to evaluate whether progressive addition lenses (PAL’s) slow the rate of progression of juvenile-onset myopia when compared to conventional single vision lenses (SV) as measured by cycloplegic autorefraction. An additional outcome measure is axial length as measured by A-scan ultrasonography.

A secondary aim of the trial is to describe the natural history of juvenile-onset myopia in a group of children receiving either conventional treatment or progressive additional lenses. We also plan to explore factors, e.g., age, gender, and initial refraction, that may influence the progression of myopia. This aim will be achieved by multivariate analyses of predictor variables for progression.

1New England College of Optometry, University of Alabama, Birmingham, Pennsylvania College of Optometry, University of Houston