Currently, hyperopia receives much less research attention than myopia even though the impact of moderate to high levels of hyperopia especially in one eye (anisohyperopia) can lead to amblyopia if not corrected fully at a young age. Hyperopia occurs as a consequence of insufficient ocular growth and a failure to emmetropise (reach the expected normal level) in childhood with the majority of hyperopic refractive errors resulting from an eye that is too short for its refractive power. In anisohyperopia it is unclear why one eye may remain hyperopic while the fellow eye grows towards an emmetropic state. Studies on animals have suggested that manipulating peripheral defocus through optical means while simultaneously providing correct axial focus can either discourage or encourage axial growth to effectively treat myopia or hyperopia respectively. Recent research has established that progression of myopia and axial growth can be significantly reduced in children and adolescents through the use of bifocal or multifocal contact lenses.