What type of contact lense provides the best resolution?

Discussion in 'Contact Lenses' started by Bob Simon, Jun 12, 2008.

  1. Bob Simon

    Bob Simon Guest

    I'm 57 years old. I wore Fluroperm 151 lenses 24x7 without problem
    from 1995 until last year. About 12 months ago, an optometrist
    recommended that I switch to O2Optix because they are an aspheric
    lense. He said that I would see better with aspherics because (if I
    remember his spiel correctly) they focus all the wavelengths of light
    onto a single point better than the lenses I was wearing. Is this
    generally considered to be true or not?

    Although I noticed an immediate improvement in my vision with the
    lenses he fitted me with, I believe that may have been entirely due to
    the updated diopter. Now, I only have one more pair of O2Optix lenses
    left and I probably need a new prescription too. (I now need stronger
    reading glasses than the ones I've been using.)

    I am looking for advice on what type of contact lenses offer many
    people my age the best vision. I've had good results from both RGPs
    and high water content soft lenses, but I prefer to add reading
    glasses as needed rather than monovision and I'm not keen on
    multifocals.
     
    Bob Simon, Jun 12, 2008
    #1
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  2. Bob Simon

    p.clarkii Guest

    The aspheric design of O2 Optix is meant to correct spherical
    aberration, not chromatic aberration.
    Theoretically, correcting higher order aberrations like spherical
    aberration should produce increased acuity but in practice most
    patients don't really notice any improvement in acuity with aspheric
    versus spherical lens designs. It strikes me as an academic argument
    used to market certain lens brands rather than a real-life benefit to
    improved vision.

    IMHO, if you don't mind carrying around reading glasses, and if good
    acuity is your primary goal, then I would recommend a comfortable
    contact that fully corrects you for distance rather than using
    monovision or multifocal lenses. If you find RGPs to be
    satisfactory, they work quite well. In the realm of disposable soft
    contacts I would recommend using a silicon hydrogel-type lens and I am
    pretty keen on Coopervision's new Avaris brand lens that is a silicon
    hydrogel plastic that is further modified to also possess a high water
    content. I have been wearing these lenses myself for the last week
    and have fit a couple of patients in them too. So far they seem quite
    promising (and not too expensive either). Another good lens is Acuvue
    Oasys. O2 Optix are OK but a significant number of my patients
    complain that they are not as comfortable as they would prefer.

    Here's a reference on aspheric lens designs:
    http://www.clspectrum.com/article.aspx?article=12770

    ======
     
    p.clarkii, Jun 12, 2008
    #2
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  3. Bob Simon

    Bob Simon Guest

    Thanks for the reply and for the reference to the "fact or fiction"
    article. Since you mention RGPs first, I presume you believe that
    this type of lens is the best option to optimize my vision. Is this
    correct?

    As I mentioned in my original post, I wore Fluoroperm 151s for over a
    decade without problems. Now that I am considering switching back to
    RGPs, can you tell me if there are any specific lenses that you prefer
    to the Fluoroperms?

    Thanks!

    Bob Simon
     
    Bob Simon, Jun 12, 2008
    #3
  4. Bob Simon

    p.clarkii Guest

    fluoroperm is a good material.

    I have no preference for RGPs over soft lenses. The downside of RGPs
    is that they are not comfortable to most patients although some, like
    you apparently, have no problems with them. Also, they can pop-out of
    your eye occasionally. Otherwise, they work quite well and can be
    pretty cost-effective (they last for a long time). Less than 4% of
    contact lens wearers use RGPs mostly because of the comfort problems.
     
    p.clarkii, Jun 13, 2008
    #4
  5. Bob Simon

    Bob Simon Guest

    Thanks! Now that I think about it, I had a bigger problem with dust
    with the hard than the soft lenses and I've had contacts pop out
    before but it is rare and cost-effective sounds good to me. My key
    question is do both types optimally improve one's vision?

    Also, I got an eye infection after sleeping with my soft contacts but
    never had this problem with the fluoroperms so I presume they are
    better in this regard.
     
    Bob Simon, Jun 13, 2008
    #5
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