<P> It has long been assumed that wearing corrective spectacles might possibly perturb the process of emmetropization in young children, with this assumption being supported in particular also by animal studies . However, undercorrection of myopia in humans has been shown to increase the rate of myopic progression . However, it is not yet fully understood for which patient groups, if any, the wearing of corrective spectacles in childhood actually impedes emmetropization . In hyperopic children, yet more factors are to be considered: Hyperopia is known to be a significant risk factor for esotropia, therefore undercorrection may have the side effect of increasing this risk . There is widespread consensus that undercorrection is counterindicated for children with accommodative esotropia . It is still unclear for which hyperopic, non-strabismic children corrective spectacles may translate to a lower strabismus risk . There are indications that emmetropization is relevant for hyperopic children who have at most about 3.0 diopter, whereas children with stronger hyperopia seem to not change their refraction independently of whether the refractive error is corrected or not . </P> <P> A Cochrane Review of three trials seeking to determine whether spectacle correction reduced the occurrence of strabismus in children included one study which suggested that spectacle correction perturbed emmetropization in children, while a second study reported no differences . </P> <P> "Emmetropia" is derived from Greek ἔμμετρος emmetros "well - proportioned" (from ἐν en "in" and μέτρον metron "measure") and ὤψ ōps "sight" (GEN ὠπός ōpos). Translated literally, the term indicates the condition of an eye's having in itself (i.e., without recourse to corrective lenses or other instruments) the capability to obtain an accurate measurement of an object's physical appearance . </P>

The eye will automatically focus on distant things unless