Soft contact lens wear in children: benefits and limitations

Soft contact lens wear in children offers an appealing alternative to spectacles and has emerged as an area of significant interest, particularly within the context of the increasing prevalence of myopia. However, despite the advantages and growing acceptance of soft contact lens wear in children, spectacles remain the predominant method of vision correction for this group. This narrative literature review highlights the benefits of soft contact lens wear for children - as well as the challenges that face its wider acceptance - and aims to provide eye care professionals with a timely resource to aid in addressing parental concerns and misconceptions about the appropriateness of soft contact lenses for children. Parental concerns may include misunderstandings about handling, safety, compliance, and comfort, and many parents may not be aware of the extent to which children can benefit from soft contact lens wear. Soft contact lens wear provides children with an improved quality of life and improved satisfaction with vision correction since it helps children to enjoy a wide range of physical activity and improves self-perceptions of both appearance and social acceptance. Soft contact lenses also seem a good mode for myopia control as more consistent use could make them a more effective treatment than spectacles, which children often remove. Various factors are considered when choosing a mode of vision correction; this narrative review provides an overview of the current research on the benefits and limitations of soft contact lens wear for children compared with spectacle wear.