The Global Myopia Crisis: Insights from the 2024 NASEM Report

Myopia is on the rise at an alarming rate, now affecting over half of young adults in many countries. Projections suggest it will impact nearly 5 billion people globally by 2050. This growing epidemic has major implications for public health, vision care, and the future of optical interventions.

In this timely webinar, Dr. Machelle T. Pardue, Professor at Emory University and senior research career scientist at the Atlanta VA, will present key findings from the 2024 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine consensus report on myopia. As a member of the expert committee that authored the report, Dr. Pardue will provide an insider’s overview of the current scientific understanding of myopia development, the environmental and biological factors driving its rapid increase, and research priorities for the field.

Whether you're focused on optics, retina, eye growth, or translational vision science, this webinar is essential for anyone looking to contribute to solutions for one of the most pressing global challenges in eye health today.

Subject Matter Level: Intermediate - Assumes basic knowledge of the topic

What You Will Learn:
• Gain insights from the 2024 NASEM Myopia Report on the biological, environmental, and societal drivers of the global rise in myopia.
• Understand current knowledge gaps and research priorities critical for developing effective myopia control strategies.
• Learn how vision scientists, clinicians, and industry can contribute to mitigating the long-term impacts of progressive myopia.

Who Should Attend:
• Students, postdocs, and faculty in optics, vision science, optometry, ophthalmology and related fields seeking to understand the latest developments in myopia research.
• Vision professionals and researchers working on diagnostics, interventions or technologies to address refractive error and eye growth.
• Anyone interested in the public health impact of myopia and strategies to mitigate its growing global burden.

About the Presenter: Machelle Pardue from Emory University and Atlanta VA Center for Visual and Neurocognitive Rehabilitation

Machelle T. Pardue is a professor and Vice Chair of Research in the Department of Ophthalmology at Emory University and a senior research career scientist at the Atlanta VA Healthcare System. She is elucidating the retinal mechanisms of myopia by leveraging the power of mouse models. Her lab has investigated the contributions of several retinal pathways and retinal signaling molecules in myopic eye growth using transgenic mouse models. She has been named a Gold Fellow for the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (FARVO) and a Fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineers (FAIMBE). She received her Ph.D. in vision science and biology at the University of Waterloo. Her post-doctorate training was in visual electrophysiology at Loyola School of Medicine and Hines VA Hospital in Chicago.