Towards 2020: Spectacle lenses of the future

Despite the major technological advancements of the past 50 years, spectacles remain the most common method of correcting refractive error, even with substantial developments in contact lens materials and design as well as types of refractive surgery. Refractive error is a condition which affects almost every individual, most commonly either in youth or middle age, and so its treatment represents a significant public health necessity. It is a leading cause of vision impairment worldwide.

The World Health Organization (WHO) noted that ‘visual impairment from uncorrected refractive errors can have immediate and long-term consequences in children and adults, such as lost educational and employment opportunities, lost economic gain for individuals, families and societies, and impaired quality of life’. WHO estimates that globally 153 million people over five years of age are visually impaired as a result of uncorrected refractive error, of whom eight million are blind.1