News and Insights

Not all ortho-k lenses are equal: does a smaller treatment zone slow eye growth more?

A 12-month Shanghai trial found less eye growth with an ortho-k lens designed for a smaller treatment zone than with a standard design. Both arms wore ortho-k, and several design issues limit the conclusions.

Glasses or drops? A two-year European head-to-head of DIMS lenses and 0.01% atropine

A two-year Polish randomised trial found less eye growth with DIMS spectacle lenses than with 0.01% atropine, mostly in younger children and in year 1. We look at what the design can and can't tell us.

Twice the dose, the same result? What the MARS trial tells us about 0.02% vs 0.04% atropine

A Czech placebo-controlled trial found 0.02% and 0.04% atropine both slowed eye growth over 12 months. Why "no significant difference" between doses is not the same as equivalence.

Red-light therapy outside China: a 34-child Australian pilot and the safety questions it cannot answer

A Melbourne pilot trial of 34 children found red-light therapy was associated with less axial elongation than spectacles alone over 12 months. It is small, unmasked to families, device-company funded and cannot settle retinal safety.

When ortho-k alone isn't enough: adding alternate-day atropine for fast progressors

A one-year randomised trial added 0.01% atropine every second night for children still progressing quickly in ortho-k lenses. Eye growth was slower, but the study was unmasked, had no placebo drop, and the benefit faded over time.

Start low, step up? What an uncontrolled atropine escalation study can and cannot show

A Beijing study moved children to 0.02% or 0.04% atropine if they progressed on 0.01%. With no control arm, regression to the mean and natural slowing with age can mimic a treatment effect.

Where atropine's benefit levels off: the dose-response plateau in a 33-trial meta-analysis

A 2026 meta-analysis of 33 placebo-controlled trials suggests the refraction benefit of atropine for childhood myopia flattens as concentration rises, while side effects increase with dose. We look at what the abstract shows and what it leaves out.

Myopia

ACUVUE Abiliti 1-Day: what the evidence actually shows, and what is still manufacturer data

Abiliti 1-Day is the first daily silicone hydrogel myopia-control soft lens and is now fitted in New Zealand. We separate the peer-reviewed six-month randomised trial from the manufacturer's two- and three-year claims, compare it with MiSight's three-year RCT, and explain what we measure in Hamilton to know whether it is working.

Rebound: what happens to myopia when treatment stops?

A 2026 Bayesian network meta-analysis of 117 RCTs compared on-treatment efficacy with rebound 12 months after stopping. Low-dose atropine held its benefit; higher-dose atropine and red-light showed clinically meaningful rebound. Abstract-only, industry-authored.

Who paid, and does it matter? Reading conflict-of-interest statements in myopia-control trials

A 134-trial systematic review asked whether the detail of a conflict-of-interest statement predicts a myopia-control trial's quality or conclusions. We read the abstract and explain what the findings do and do not show.

Glasses or ortho-k? A head-to-head randomised trial, and what 'non-inferior' does and doesn't mean

A Danish randomised trial compared DIMS myopia-control spectacles with orthokeratology over 18 months. We explain the 0.13 mm non-inferiority margin, the corneal-thickness adjustment, and what the result does and does not show.

HAL myopia-control spectacles in Western children: what the US randomised trial adds

The first US randomised trial of highly aspherical lenslet (HAL) spectacles reported 0.64 D and 0.24 mm less myopia progression than single-vision lenses over 24 months. We examine the numbers, the sponsor authorship and the interim design.

Clinical Trials

Refer a patient to eye research

How and when to refer a patient for a research study at NZERC, what we will and will not do with your patient, and what you get back.

Clinical Trials

Research and clinical trials at NZERC

The starting point for sponsors, participants and referring clinicians: what NZERC does, which therapeutic areas it covers, and where to go next.

Keratoconus

Keratoconus and specialty contact lens trials: site capability

For lens manufacturers and corneal device sponsors: the imaging endpoints, fitting expertise and patient population NZERC brings to keratoconus and specialty lens studies.

Dry Eye

Dry eye and ocular surface trials: site capability

What NZERC offers sponsors of dry eye and MGD studies: the sign and symptom endpoints we measure, the comparator devices already on site, and prior industry trial experience.

Clinical Trials

Myopia clinical trials: site capability

What a sponsor gets from NZERC for a myopia control study: the endpoints we measure, the modalities our investigators already use, and the questions we think are worth answering.

Clinical Trials

Patient recruitment and our study population

Recruitment is the single biggest risk in a small ophthalmic study. This page sets out where NZERC's participants come from and how retention is managed.

Myopia

Low-dose atropine eye drops for myopia: what the LAMP trial shows

The LAMP trial compared three low concentrations of atropine with placebo. We set out the dose-response results, the side effects and the open questions.

Myopia

Red light therapy for myopia: what the evidence shows, and the safety question

Repeated low-level red-light therapy has produced some of the largest effects seen in a myopia trial, alongside serious unanswered safety questions. We set out both.

Myopia

MiYOSMART (DIMS) spectacle lenses: what the clinical trial evidence shows

The two-year randomised trial and six-year follow-up of Defocus Incorporated Multiple Segments (DIMS) spectacle lenses, sold as MiYOSMART, with effect sizes and limitations.

Myopia

MiSight 1 day contact lenses: what the clinical trial evidence shows

The three-year randomised trial and six-year follow-up of the MiSight 1 day dual-focus soft contact lens, with effect sizes, safety findings and limitations.

Myopia

Essilor Stellest lenses: what the clinical trial evidence shows

Two-year randomised data and five-year follow-up for highly aspherical lenslet spectacles, with effect sizes, the wearing-time effect and an honest read of the limitations.

Clinical Trials

Taking part in eye research: what to expect

A plain-language guide for adults and parents: why people take part in eye studies, who can join, the steps from first contact to study visits, and your rights throughout.

Clinical Trials

Eye research studies in Hamilton: register your interest

The research areas NZERC is recruiting interest for in Hamilton and the Waikato, who each one suits, and how to join the research register.

Myopia

Choroidal thickness and choroidal vascularity index (CVI) measurement for myopia research

The choroid responds to myopia treatments within weeks, long before axial length separates. We explain choroidal thickness and CVI, the trial evidence behind them, and how NZERC measures both.

Clinical Trials

Equipment and endpoints at the New Zealand Eye Research Centre

Sponsors ask what a site can measure. This page lists the instruments at NZERC by the study endpoint each one supports.

Clinical Trials

Early feasibility and pilot studies for eye devices in New Zealand

A plain guide for device and lens companies to running a first pilot study in New Zealand: the ethics and regulatory route, realistic steps, and what a small, measurement-focused site can deliver.

Clinical Trials

An ophthalmic clinical trial site in New Zealand: information for sponsors and CROs

What the New Zealand Eye Research Centre offers sponsors, device and lens manufacturers and CROs: therapeutic areas, investigators, equipment, the New Zealand regulatory route and how to start a feasibility conversation.

Device-based treatment of meibomian gland dysfunction: where the evidence stands

Four device modalities target the meibomian gland dysfunction behind most evaporative dry eye. We set out the trial numbers — effect sizes, follow-up, adverse events, sponsorship — and the gradient between them, and argue that device choice should follow measurement.

Myopia control in 2026: what the trial evidence supports

Ordinary glasses correct myopia but do not alter its course. We set out the randomised-trial evidence for orthokeratology, dual-focus soft lenses and low-dose atropine — effect sizes, dropouts, adverse events, sponsorship — and what it means for New Zealand practice.

Myopia

Slowing Myopia in Children: How Every Modern Treatment Works — and the Evidence Behind It

A research-led guide to every modern myopia-control option for children — how each works and what the trial evidence shows — from the New Zealand Eye Research Centre.

Dry Eye

Rexon-Eye Quantum Molecular Resonance Electrotherapy for Dry Eye Disease

A research-based overview of Rexon-Eye quantum molecular resonance (QMR) electrotherapy for dry eye disease — its proposed mechanism and the prospective clinical evidence across mixed-type dry eye.

Dry Eye

Intense Pulsed Light (Eswin) for Meibomian Gland Dysfunction and Evaporative Dry Eye

A research-based overview of intense pulsed light (IPL) for meibomian gland dysfunction and evaporative dry eye, delivered on the Eswin platform — its mechanisms and the randomised-trial and meta-analytic evidence.

Dry Eye

Tixel 2 Thermomechanical Treatment for Meibomian Gland Dysfunction and Dry Eye

A research-based overview of the Tixel 2 thermomechanical device for meibomian gland dysfunction and evaporative dry eye — its mechanism and the prospective clinical evidence, including the Safir pilot trial.

Dry Eye

LipiFlow Vectored Thermal Pulsation for Meibomian Gland Dysfunction

A research-based overview of LipiFlow vectored thermal pulsation for meibomian gland dysfunction — how it works, and what the randomised trials, meta-analyses and the American Academy of Ophthalmology assessment actually show.

Dry Eye

The Dry Eye Drop Formulary: Chemical Composition and DEWS III-Based Use

A clinical formulary of the dry eye drops, gels and ointments available at Rose Optometry — each mapped by its chemical composition to its intended use under the TFOS DEWS III (2025) management framework.

Myopia

Retinal Confusion: Rethinking the Central Mechanism in Myopia Management

An evidence-based look at retinal confusion: how disturbed contrast signalling across the central and peripheral retina may drive myopic eye growth, and what it means for modern myopia control.

Contact Lenses

Orthokeratology Lens Care Guide

Essential cleaning and maintenance routine for ortho-k lenses to ensure safety and long-term eye health.

Contact Lenses

Best Solution for RGP Lenses

Find the best cleaning solutions for rigid gas permeable lenses with expert-backed suggestions.

Keratoconus

Advanced Corneal Imaging and Keratoconus Monitoring

High-resolution imaging technologies enable early detection and precise monitoring of keratoconus progression for timely and effective clinical management.

Contact Lenses

AOSept vs Everclean: Which Hydrogen Peroxide Contact Lens System Is Better?

A complete comparison of two leading lens cleaning systems to help you choose the safest and most effective option.

Contact Lenses

Hydrogen Peroxide Lens Systems

Reusable contact lenses remain an important component of modern vision care, particularly for patients wearing rigid gas permeable (RGP), orthokeratology, and scleral lenses.