The Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE) has published Issue 65 of Contact Lens Update, which focuses on the potential benefits of specialty rigid lenses (sclerals and orthokeratology) for the management of complicated cases.
“Eyecare practitioners are very comfortable fitting soft contact lenses, yet only about one in 10 fits involve rigid specialty lenses. In some cases of severe dry eye, diseased corneas, or post-trauma care, rigid lenses can attain vision or other performance levels that soft lenses simply cannot provide,” said CORE director, Professor Lyndon Jones. “This issue of Contact Lens Update zeroes in on these situations where specialty rigid lenses can prove invaluable for certain patients.”
Maria Walker, assistant professor at the College of Optometry at the University of Houston, writes the opening editorial. She provides a comprehensive review of the potential scleral and orthokeratology (ortho-k) lens use in patients with dry eye and what makes an ideal (and less than ideal) patient for both lens types.
The feature article from Daddi Fadel, a private practitioner and specialty lens fitter from Italy, discusses key findings from a paper investigating the impact of a polyethylene glycol (PEG)-based surface treatment on scleral lens comfort in patients with dry eyes. Her insights will help clinicians understand potential benefits that coatings may provide and optimal prescribing situations.
Boris Severinsky, chief of the Specialty Lens Service at the Emory University School of Medicine, recaps his poster presented at a recent American Academy of Optometry meeting. His study shows the benefits of fitting therapeutic scleral lenses to manage ocular surface disease and how valuable they can be in the rehabilitation of patients with a variety of ocular surface complications.
Melanie Frogozo, a private practitioner in San Antonio, Texas, provides an extensive case report complemented by stunning images. She summarises the use of a scleral contact lens to manage a challenging patient with an extensive persistent epithelial defect (PED) due to neurotrophic keratitis. Her review of the fitting procedure offers a fascinating read of how valuable scleral lenses can be in very complex cases.