Myopic refraction is the most common ocular pathology, currently affecting about 1.5 billion people worldwide. Recent decades have seen a trend towards a significant increase in myopia prevalence, which is likely to continue in the near future. Therefore, we observe some kind of an epidemic of myopia. The greatest concern is caused by cases of uncorrectable visual impairment associated with myopia, which make pathological (degenerative) myopia one of the leading causes of low vision and blindness in many countries. At the same time, there is still no uniform interpretation of such important concepts as “high myopia” and “pathological myopia”, which can negatively affect various aspects of clinical and scientific interaction among ophthalmologists. The article provides an overview of modern work on the above issues and proposes definitions of terms to be used in the healthcare system of the Russian Federation

Axial myopia is a risk factor for the development of many concomitant pathological conditions, including those likely to lead to an irreversible loss of visual functions. Until now, specialists disagree about the terminology and the approaches to classification of pathological myopia. We propose a critical analysis of the state-of-the-art research and use them to offer, the definitions of such conditions as “myopic macular degeneration (myopic maculopathy)”, “myopic choroidal neovascularization” and “myopic traction maculopathy” and recommend them for use in the healthcare system of the Russian Federation

High myopia is a common ametropia associated with a significant risk of multiple comorbidities. Decreased visual functions of myopic patients may be caused by non-specific diseases such as cataracts, glaucoma and rhegmatogenous retinal detachment, which are very likely in myopia. Yet especially important are the specific changes such as atrophic, traction and neovascular manifestations of pathological myopia, the totality of which is defined as myopic macular degeneration or myopic maculopathy. The review highlights current approaches to the diagnosis and treatment of various diseases associated with high myopia, including original schemes for managing patients with myopic choroidal neovascularization and myopic traction maculopathy, developed by experts from the Expert Council on Retinal and Optic Nerve Diseases of the Russian nationwide public body Association of ophthalmologists, and includes an information leaflet for patients.