Purpose: To test the hypothesis that relative peripheral hyperopia predicts development and progression of myopia.
Methods: Refraction along the horizontal visual field was measured under cycloplegia at visual field angles of 0°, ±15°, and ±30° at baseline, 1 and 2 years in over 1700 initially 7-year-old Chinese children, and at baseline and 1 year in over 1000 initially 14-year olds. One refraction classification for central refraction was "nonmyopia, myopia" (nM, M), consisting of nM greater than -0.50 diopters (D; spherical equivalent) and M less than or equal to -0.50 D. A second classification was "hyperopia, emmetropia, low myopia, and moderate/high myopia" (H, E, LM, MM) with H greater than or equal to +1.00 D, E, -0.49 to +0.99 D, LM, -2.99 to -0.50 D, and MM less than or equal to -3.00 D. Subclassifications were made on the basis of development and progression of myopia over the 2 years. Changes in central refraction over time were determined for different groups, and relative peripheral refraction over time was compared between different subgroups.
Results: Simple linear regression of central refraction as a function of relative peripheral refraction did not predict myopia progression as relative peripheral refraction became more hyperopic: relative peripheral hyperopia and relative peripheral myopia predicted significant myopia progression for 0% and 35% of group/visual field angle combinations, respectively. Subgroups who developed myopia did not have more initial relative peripheral hyperopia than subgroups who did not develop myopia.
Conclusions: Relative peripheral hyperopia does not predict development nor progression of myopia in children. This calls into question the efficacy of treatments that aim to slow progression of myopia in children by "treating" relative peripheral hyperopia.