Under-correction of human myopia--is it myopigenic?: a retrospective analysis of clinical refraction data.

Purpose: To investigate retrospectively, based on routine clinical records in an optometric office, the effect of refractive under-correction of the myopic spectacle prescription on myopic progression in children and young adults.

Methods: Patient records of children and young-adult myopes in a private optometric practice in Glendale, Arizona, USA, were initially reviewed to identify those that met the criteria. Information collected from the patient records included: age, gender, the dates and number of their visits (more than one visit was required for use of the data), final prescription, and non-cycloplegic subjective refraction.