A growth chart for the eye?

New research co-led by scientists from The University of Western Australia has created axial length centile charts for East Asia, Europe and Australia – providing clinicians with a reference standard when monitoring eye growth.

The study, which was published in JAMA Ophthalmology, involved analysis of 560,000 eye measurements from 147,573 children and young people.

Data was collated from individuals in Australia, Europe and East Asia to develop the first age, sex, and region-specific centile charts for eye length.

Study co-lead, Dr Gareth Lingham, from The University of Western Australia’s Medical School, shared that in order to manage myopia, clinicians must monitor eye growth.

However, he added that eye growth can vary widely depending on age, sex and where a child lives.

“A lack of reference values charting these differences has made it hard to interpret eye lengths in different groups, in turn making it difficult to confidently spot myopia risk early on,” Lingham explained.

Professor David Mackey, of The University of Western Australia’s Medical School, highlighted that the charts are similar to those used to track height and weight in babies and children.

“Although these centile charts are not intended to diagnose myopia, they could help clinicians identify whether a child’s eye growth is unusually rapid, how they compare with peers in their region, and whether they are at risk,” Mackey said.

The study was a collaboration between The University of Western Australia, the Erasmus Medical Centre in The Netherlands, and other institutions in Melbourne, Sydney, The Netherlands, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales, Switzerland, Norway, Finland, Spain, Singapore, China and Hong Kong.