Alpha Corporation’s quest to help battle myopia

“We are taking on the global myopia problem.”
Masamichi Kanegae, President, Alpha Corporation Inc.

Amid the increasing use of digital screens, myopia (or nearsightedness) is on the rise worldwide and could affect 5 billion people by 2050. The problem is particularly prevalent in children, with experts estimating that up to 80% of teenagers in East Asia currently suffer from nearsightedness.

Orthokeratology lenses are seen as one of the best solutions to the issue and Japanese company Alpha Corporation Inc., a member of the Menicon Group, is among the companies leading development in the field. Unlike regular contact lenses, orthokeratology lenses are worn during sleep and removed during the day, allowing users to go without corrective eyewear during the day, and it is also believed they can even control the progression of myopia.

The eye after lens removal

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With over 50 years of experience in contact lenses manufacturing, Alpha became the first orthokeratology lenses-approved company in Japan in 2009, and today offers products to myopia sufferers in Asian countries. This company manufactures its lenses at its factory in Nagato, Japan, where it implements strict quality control and uses the latest IC tags to automate every process from material selection to standard inspections. Orthokeratology lens manufacturing requires the lathing of complex concave shapes with high precision and reproducibility; and Alpha’s lathing process can be performed with an accuracy of 1 / 10,000 mm, with lenses being made according to each patient's eyes.

"Orthokeratology lenses hold so much promise as a means of managing the myopia problem, and our development of these lenses couldn’t have come at a better time,” says Masamichi Kanegae, President of Alpha Corporation. “Through orthokeratology lenses with Japanese roots that go beyond the Made-in-Japan brand quality and with the Alpha Quality that our company is capable of, we are taking on the global myopia problem.”