How light and close-up activities shape children's eyesight
Official title: Light, near work, and ocular remodeling and during emmetropization and myopia development in children
Funded at University of Houston · NIH-11290775 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at whether lower bright light exposure and more close-up activities like reading or screens lead to nearsightedness in children and how the eye's tissues change.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Houston NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Houston, United States) |
| Project start | July 1, 2019 |
| Project end | February 28, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $425,038 |
| NIH project number | 5R01EY030193-07 |
| Project ID | NIH-11290775 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are children and teenagers (from infancy through late adolescence) who are at risk for or in early stages of myopia and can attend repeated clinic visits in Houston.
✕Less likely to help
Adults outside the child/adolescent age range or people with advanced, unrelated eye disease are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
What this research studies
If you or your child join, researchers will track time spent outdoors and near-work using wearable light sensors and activity logs, and will do detailed eye exams and advanced retinal imaging (including adaptive optics scanning laser ophthalmoscopy) over time. They will compare children with more outdoor time to those with more near work to see links to myopia starting and getting worse. The team will image the choroid, retinal blood vessels, retina structure, and optic nerve head to detect remodeling that could raise risk for later eye problems. The goal is to identify behavior changes and structural signs that could guide ways to prevent or slow nearsightedness.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could point to simple behavior changes, like more outdoor time or modified near-work habits, that help prevent or slow nearsightedness in children.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies have shown outdoor time can reduce the chance of developing myopia, but evidence on slowing progression and on detailed structural eye changes is mixed and still emerging.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Houston
Houston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Ostrin, Lisa a — University of Houston
- Study coordinator: Ostrin, Lisa a
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Sulfated molecules in the back of the eye and how they shape myopia progression
This grant studies how losing certain building blocks in the eye’s outer layer may affect eye shape and the worsening of nearsightedness in pig eyes to model human disease.
-
Understanding how myopia and glaucoma are connected through eye mechanics
This study looks at how eye growth in myopia may influence glaucoma risk and what markers could identify it early.
-
Topical eyedrops to slow myopia progression in children
A new eyedrop, IVMED-85, is being studied to help slow down myopia in kids by strengthening the eye’s tissues through a copper-related mechanism.
-
Diagnostic Innovations in Glaucoma for High Myopia
A study to improve early detection of open-angle glaucoma in people with high myopia using advanced eye imaging.
-
PICNIC: Factors inside the eye linked to childhood near-sightedness
Researchers are studying how eye structure and vision in young children may predict who will develop myopia, aiming to understand why some kids become nearsighted.
-
Peripheral vision factors behind kids’ nearsightedness
A study with children explores how outer-edge eye signals and eye optics affect the worsening of nearsightedness and whether new lenses and tools can help slow or prevent it.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.