Traditional retinal imaging only captures a narrow 45-degree view of the back of the eye. While useful, it leaves a vast amount of the peripheral retina completely unseen.

The Optomap captures a high-resolution, 200-degree panoramic image of your retina in a single shot—in less than half a second. This allows us to instantly evaluate over 80% of your retina at once. If you are curious about the clinical engineering behind this device, you can read more on the official Optomap website.

Many sight-threatening eye conditions—such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, and general health issues like diabetes or high blood pressure—develop silently, without any noticeable symptoms.

By incorporating Optomap into your routine Advanced Eye Examination, we establish a definitive baseline of your retinal health. For children, it is equally crucial. The scan is completely painless, rapid, and typically does not require dilating drops, making it perfectly suited for younger patients. It allows us to meticulously check the peripheral retina of short-sighted children whose eyes are elongating and stretching.

While routine care is important, the Optomap becomes absolutely critical if you begin experiencing sudden visual disturbances.

If you live in Croydon, South London, or Surrey, and you are searching for information on retinal detachment symptoms, you must be aware of the key warning signs:

• A sudden increase in new "floaters" (dark spots, cobwebs, or squiggly lines floating across your vision).

• Sudden flashes of light, especially in your peripheral vision (like a camera flash or lightning).

• A dark shadow or "curtain" descending over part of your vision.

These symptoms can indicate that the gel inside your eye (the vitreous) is tugging on your retina. In severe cases, this traction can cause a retinal tear or a full retinal detachment—a medical emergency that can lead to permanent blindness if not treated promptly.

Why Optomap is Crucial for Sudden Symptoms

Retinal tears and detachments almost always begin in the extreme periphery of the retina—the exact area that traditional cameras miss.

When you present with flashes and floaters, the Optomap allows us to instantly visualize the far edges of your retina to check for microscopic tears, holes, or fluid accumulation. It provides the definitive clarity needed to rule out a detachment or ensure you are urgently referred to a hospital if a tear is found.

If you are experiencing sudden flashes, floaters, or a shadow in your vision, do not wait for a routine appointment.

At The Eye Centre, we provide the Croydon Community Eyecare Service (CES). This is an NHS-funded referral scheme that allows patients with routine or urgent eye conditions to be seen by an approved Optometrist in the community. By visiting us, you will be seen more quickly than waiting for a hospital appointment. Our lead Optometrist is highly experienced in seeing and treating numerous eye problems, having worked at Croydon University Hospital Eye Unit for over 5 years. All appointments under the CES scheme are covered by the NHS for everyone provided you are registered with a Croydon GP.

If you are experiencing these symptoms right now, please complete our urgent triage form immediately so our clinical team can assess your condition: Click Here to Complete Our Urgent Triage Form

Atropine is a pharmaceutical eye drop that has been used in ophthalmology for decades. However, extensive global research has recently proven that when formulated at a specific, very low concentration, Atropine eye drops are incredibly effective at slowing the progression of childhood myopia.

In November 2025, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) officially licensed low-dose Atropine specifically for myopia management in the UK, marketed under the trade name Ryjunea. This regulatory milestone was strongly supported by the landmark CHAMP-UK trial, which definitively found that low-dose Atropine successfully and safely slows myopia progression specifically in UK children.

Applied as a single drop of Ryjunea in each eye before bedtime, low-dose Atropine works by relaxing the focusing mechanisms of the eye and altering the biochemical signals that cause the eyeball to stretch and elongate.

While the MHRA has approved this treatment, the College of Optometrists has confirmed that Ryjunea low-dose Atropine for myopia management is not currently available on the NHS. It can only be accessed via a private prescription.

Furthermore, because Ryjunea is a prescription-only medication, it cannot be prescribed by a standard high-street optician.

This is where choosing an Independent Prescribing (IP) Optometrist becomes vital for your child’s care. As an IP-qualified specialist, I hold the advanced medical credentials required to directly write private prescriptions for these newly licensed Ryjunea drops. This ensures your child receives immediate access to the latest medical interventions right here in our Croydon practice.

Ryjunea is a game-changer, but it is not a “one-size-fits-all” solution. At The Eye Centre, we use Atropine in addition to our existing, clinically proven myopia management treatments.

Depending on your child’s specific prescription, lifestyle, and rate of progression, we may recommend using Ryjunea drops:

• As a standalone treatment, paired with no spectacles or standard single-vision glasses for daytime wear.

• As a combination therapy, used alongside specialist interventions like MiYOSMART/MiYOSMART IQ or Imperium spectacle lenses, MiSight soft daily lenses, or EyeDream MC Ortho-K lenses for a compounded, maximum-efficacy approach.

The primary goal of Ryjunea Atropine therapy is to stop the eyeball from physically stretching out of proportion. Standard eye tests—which simply check if the prescription has changed—are not accurate enough to monitor this medical treatment.

To guarantee the eye drops are working, we utilise our state-of-the-art Topcon Myah diagnostic instrument. As a mandatory part of our myopia management programme, we take pinpoint-accurate axial length measurements every 3 months.

By continuously tracking the physical growth of the eye to a fraction of a millimetre, we can confirm the treatment’s success or proactively adjust your child’s clinical plan to ensure their vision remains protected. We also routinely perform Optomap Ultra-Widefield Imaging to monitor the delicate peripheral retina, ensuring absolute peace of mind.

The MiYOSMART iQ is the newest version of HOYA's globally recognised myopia control spectacle lens. While the original MiYOSMART lens remains an excellent choice, this next-generation design has been engineered to deliver even more impressive clinical results.

In a recent clinical trial, the MiYOSMART iQ stopped clinically relevant myopia progression for 9 out of 10 children over their first year of wear. Furthermore, it has been reported to successfully control progression in children as young as four years of age.

Like its predecessor, the MiYOSMART iQ looks just like a normal single-vision lens, but it utilizes Defocus Incorporated Multiple Segments (D.I.M.S.) technology. However, it refines this with a Triple Enhanced Design (TED) to maximize effectiveness:

• Activated: The defocus segments have been moved closer to the geometric centre of the lens, reducing the central clear zone from 9.4mm to 6.9mm. This ensures the near-peripheral retina is continuously activated, which research shows is the region most responsive to myopia control signals.
• Powerful: The defocus power has been increased from +3.50D to +4.50D. This delivers a stronger, more robust signal to slow the elongation of the eye.
• Extended: The treatment zone has been expanded. This guarantees that a larger portion of your child's visual field receives the preventative signal, even when wearing larger spectacle frames.

We know that children's glasses need to withstand the playground. The MiYOSMART iQ features a brand-new S.P.A.R.K. (Scratch resistant, Protection, Advanced technologies, Ready for Kids) coating.

• It is up to 50% more scratch-resistant than the previous generation.
• It repels water, smudges, and dust up to five times better, maintaining long-lasting cleanability.
• It provides 100% UV protection from the front while actively reducing reflections and glare.

For kids who are always outdoors, we can also supply these lenses with Chameleon photochromic technology, automatically adapting to varying sunlight to offer constant UV protection. Plus, thanks to new FreeForm technology, the edges of the lenses can be reduced by up to 10%, giving a thinner, more aesthetically pleasing finish.

Dispensing a highly technical lens like the MiYOSMART iQ requires pinpoint accuracy. If the treatment zones are not perfectly aligned with your child's visual axis, the lens cannot do its job properly.

This is why our Myopia Management clinics in South London involve meticulous frame styling and hospital-grade diagnostics. Using our Topcon Myah machine, we precisely measure your child's axial length every three months. By tracking the physical growth of the eyeball, we can definitively confirm that the MiYOSMART iQ lenses are working. We also routinely conduct Optomap ultra-widefield imaging to check the stretched peripheral areas of the retina for any early signs of damage.

As an Independent Prescribing Optometrist, my priority is ensuring your child has access to the highest tier of medical eye care without the wait for a hospital referral.