Quarterly newsletter on Soft Specialty Contact Lens
Research, Developments, Designs and Materials  WINTER 2011

WORLD WIDE VISION
Guest Editorial
 
Silicone Hydrogel Semi Scleral Contact Lenses after Corneal Cross Linking
 
I often deal with contact lens fitting on patients who have just undergone the Corneal Cross Linking procedure and would like return to their old contact lenses, usually RGP's. But is rigid contact lens wear shortly after Corneal Cross Linking safe? Some studies have demonstrated a delayed epithelial healing period. Silicone hydrogel mini-scleral contact lenses can serve as a good addition to the arsenal of specialty lens solutions for visual rehabilitation of corneal ectasia patients, especially those that require adequate visual correction shortly after a Corneal Cross Linking procedure. Click this link for more information and a case presentation on this topic.

 

  Boris Severinsky, BOptom.
  Hadassah University Hospital, Jerusalem
IN THE LITERATURE
Silicone Hydrogel Lenses for Astigmatism
 
Standard, Large Range and Custom Made

 

'Refitting current toric patients from hydrogels into silicone hydrogel torics is a great opportunity to cement your relationship with your patient ' states Patricia M. Keech in Review of Cornea & Contact Lenses. Early presbyopic patients in spherical lenses who have small amounts of residual astigmatism present a significant pool of potential according to the author. The article considers the question: 'One material does not fit all, so how do we choose the best option for each patient?'

Review of Cornea & Contact Lenses - October 2010

 

Researchers from Turkey looked at astigmatic neutralization with toric and spherical soft contact lenses. Spherical lenses failed to mask corneal toricity during topography, according to the study, while toric lenses caused central neutralization and a decrease in corneal cylinder in low and moderate astigmatic eyes.

Clinical Ophthalmology - August 2010

 

Neil Pence also discusses this topic in a recent column in Contact Lens Spectrum, in which he describes a patient with a prescription of OD -16.50 -4.75 x 180 and OS -14.50 -3.00 x 180, and he poses the question that is the title of the article: 'Can I Get That in a Silicone Hydrogel?' His 'Contact Lens Design & Materials' column looks at the current custom silicone hydrogel options available.

Contact Lens Spectrum - November 2010

IN THE LITERATURE
Ocular Spherical Aberration and Multifocal Soft Contact Lenses
Every (Presbyopic) Eye is Unique

Investigators from Sydney, Australia looked at the role of inherent spherical aberration in the optical performance of presbyopic eyes corrected with simultaneous vision multifocal contact lenses. Eyes having the same refractive prescriptions but diverse levels of inherent spherical aberration perform differently when corrected with identical multifocal contact lens designs. The investigators conclude that these findings confirm that the coupling of ocular spherical aberration and correcting lens aberrations contributes to the multifocal functionality. In other words: taking the individual aberrations of the eye into account could be useful in optimizing the success of multifocal lens fitting, and/or customizing lenses to patients' aberration profiles could be beneficial for presbyopes using multifocal soft lenses.
Optometry & Vision Science - December 2010
CASE REPORT
Challenging Cases
And Life Changing Consequences

 

Here's an example in which soft specialty lens technology had life changing consequences. This case presents a young medical student who was so limited by poor vision that she had special dispensation to have her notes printed out in large print format. I fitted her with a pair of specialty soft lenses for keratoconus, with remarkable improvement refractively. This lens also has a special feature in which 'sectors' of the lens can be ordered with different degrees of flattening or steepening and specified in degrees that define where these asymmetric peripheries are applied. For more: see link below.

Case Report by Alan Saks
 

EDUCATION
The Effect of Corneal Diameter
Matt Lampa & Mark Andre


In the last edition, we discussed the effect that horizontal visible iris diameter (HVID) has on the sagittal height of the cornea. Since most "off the rack" soft contact lenses are available with only one diameter and either one or two base curves, we want to share with you the effect that corneal diameter has on soft contact lens fitting in our day-to-day contact lens patients. Click here for more fitting tips.
 


In this Edition:
WORLD WIDE VISION
ASTIGMATISM
SPHERICAL ABERRATION & MULTIFOCAL LENSES
CASE REPORT
EDUCATION

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