Myopia greater than -8

[DDarrin]

I was DQ'd for "Myopia - refractive error greater than -8.00 diopters" last summer. USMA gave me a LOA and requested a remedial last fall. They ultimately denied my waiver late last month.

I can't understand it though because the doctors who did my remedial were very encouraging and said I don't have any underlying disease or signs of retinal detachment. They thought everything looked good.

I'm also an applicant for USNA and USAFA and also won a 4 year AROTC scholarship and a NROTC scholarship.

But, for DODMERB, everything says "Pending Waiver Submission/Review" and I haven't heard from anyone.

Is there any chance still? Has anyone heard of someone getting a waiver with this DQ?

 

[ElizaPT]

Is your vision correctable to 20/20? My DS is waiver pending as well for a similar DQ.

 

[DDarrin]

Yes it is. I wear glasses/contacts.

 

[GoCubbies]

Do you have your full eye glasses prescription?

I’m trying to get a sense for how much correction you need to get to 20/20.

 

[DDarrin]

Not sure about my glasses, but my contacts are:

Acuvue VITA Right (OD) Power: -10.00 BC: 8.4 DIA: 14.0
Acuvue VITA Left (OS) Power: -09.00 BC: 8.4 DIA: 14.0
​

Not sure if it is helpful, but this is what the USMA remedial asked for:

R151.01 --- REQUIRES A PHYSICIAN'S APPOINTMENT: Please obtain a NEW consultation with an ophthalmologist REGARDING high myopia. Please perform comprehensive eye exam including axial length both eyes, dilate fundus exam to evaluate for peripheral retinal pathology including lattice degeneration, retinal holes/tears or other risk factors for retinal detachment. Will need corneal topography (Belin Ambrosio Ectasia Display preferred) to rule out corneal dystrophy such as keratoconus.
2) R152.02 - Obtain a dilated fundoscopic exam and document whether lattice present or not, retinal holes or other defects noted.
3) R152.35 - Obtain a corneal topography exam (Belin Ambrosio Ectasis Display format) and the original color topography results.​

So far, no one else has asked for a remedial, but the person at DODMERB said that the remedial exam was sent to all of the programs.

 

[GoCubbies]

I can only make assumptions here because you have only the contact lens prescription.

Looks like you have very little to no astigmatism. I am assuming that because you didn’t mention you have toric contact lenses. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Also, your nearsightedness is pretty bad. You contact lens power is -10. In general, the correction required with contact lenses is less than the correction required for glasses.

In other words, the correction required if you used glasses would be about -11 diopters (compared to -10 diopters for contacts).

The standard for refractive error is -8 for myopes. I think up to -10 is waivered. Your refractive error is worse than -10 (in fact, I think it’s about -11) because your contacts are at -10. As mentioned before, the correction using contacts is generally less than that for glasses.

If my explanation is confusing, let me know. I may try to explain it some other way. Bottom line is your refractive error is worse than -10 based on what you’re telling me with your contact lens prescription. It can only get worse at the USMA when you’ve got your nose reading all those books

 

[kp2001]

I can only make assumptions here because you have only the contact lens prescription prescription.

Looks like you have very little to no astigmatism. I am assuming that because you didn’t mention you have toric contact lenses. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Also, your nearsightedness is pretty bad. You contact lens power is -10. In general, the correction required with contact lenses is less than the correction required for glasses.

In other words, the correction required if you used glasses would be about -11 diopters (compared to -10 diopters for contacts).

The standard for refractive error is -8 for myopes. I think up to -10 is waivered. Your refractive error is worse than -10 (in fact, I think it’s about -11) because your contacts are at -10. As mentioned before, the correction using contacts is generally less than that for glasses.

If my explanation is confusing, let me know. I may try to explain it some other way. Bottom line is your refractive error is worse than -10 based on what you’re telling me with your contact lens prescription. It can only get worse at the USMA when you’ve got your nose reading all those books

+1!

The problem isn’t that you don’t have problems now it’s the increased risk of problems as time goes on for high myopes such as the OP. When the military accepts someone they are essentially taking them for life. They are a risk averse organization when it comes to “buying” a condition that has increased risks of problems in the future. I really don’t see this being waivered unless you were in a special situation such as Medical Corps, Chaplain, or similar where they are much friendlier to waivers due to the difficulty in recruiting.

 

[GoCubbies]

High myopes are at increased risk for retinal detachments, cataracts, glaucoma, and choroidal neovascularization (new blood vessels under the retinal layer).