Use of paper selectively absorbing long wavelengths to reduce the impact of educational near work on human refractive development.

BACKGROUND/AIMS Educational near work has been identified as a major risk factor for the development of juvenile progressive myopia. A study was undertaken to determine whether differences in focal length resulting from longitudinal chromatic aberration of the eye can be exploited to reduce the impact of near work on refractive development. METHODS Infrared photorefraction was used to determine refractive states in young adult volunteers performing a task similar to reading and writing under various spectral environments. The potential benefits of the observed differences in accommodation demand were studied with a computational model of emmetropisation and myopia progression. RESULTS The refractive state was largely independent of the colour temperature of the illumination light (white paper) and the colour of commercially available papers (white illumination). Selective elimination of long wavelengths, however, significantly reduced the accommodation stimulus by about 0.5 dioptres. CONCLUSION Results from model calculations suggest that the use of paper which selectively absorbs long wavelengths may significantly reduce the myopiagenic effects of educational near work.