Contact Lenses

There is a daily battle between online contact lens companies and the eyecare professionals who put their time and effort into providing patients with contact lenses. Ms. Hagemeyer explains the disconnect between ODs and online contact lens sales.

Every patient responds differently to contact lens best practices. Here are five methods to help get patients to comply with their contact lens prescription.

Patients present with contact lens discomfort for a variety of reasons. Mile Brujic, OD, FAAO, and David Kading, OD, FAAO, FCLSA, explain why proper lid hygiene may be the key to increasing contact lens comfort.

U.S. gold medal gymnast Laurie Hernandez speaks exclusively with Optometry Times and discusses how daily disposable contact lenses helped to improve her vision when competing.

Keeping patients compliant and happy in their contact lenses can be challenging. Crystal M. Brimer, OD, FAAO, gives five practice pearls to drive contact lens success.

Cheryl Donnelly, CEO of the British Contact Lens Association, talks about learning from U.S. ODs, focusing on contact lenses, and shivering in Red Square in the latest Optometry Times Q&A.

We can easily dispell the myth, “I can’t wear contact lenses because I have astigmatism.” Today’s lenses offer high quality visual options with excellent comfort and efficient empirical fitting.

Considering that many CL patients are desensitized, it is critical we not only monitor their tear film and ocular surface for change, but we demonstrate stability or instability through measurable means. This creates trust, validates our recommendations, induces compliance, and generates positive outcomes.

Obsolescence happens. If you are not familiar with it, it is the act of becoming obsolete or out of date.

Helping astigmatic patients see more clearly can an exciting part of fitting contact lenses. There is significant value to the patient and to the practice in correcting low astigmatic patients.

You may have heard success stories with patients fit in scleral lenses and seen discussion in literature regarding the finer points of fitting these contact lenses. If you are not currently fitting scleral contact lenses but are interested in working with them, we recommend three things to prepare yourself and your practice to fit scleral lenses.

Conjunctival chalasis, or conjunctivochalasis (Cch), is a commonly observed condition in our everyday patient care experiences. Because it is so common, and because a majority of patients are asymptomatic, optometrists seldom feel the need treat.

Sell the best thing you have going for you-you.

Our previous story on toric fitting tips went over so well, we decided to bring you more! This time, we asked experts what they wish their colleagues knew about fitting toric contact lenses.

We have witnessed a rise in clinical utilization of scleral lenses in recent years, and in some cases, their clinical indications have expanded to include even those patients with regular corneas. Given this sharp rise in scleral lens utilization, the principle of lens selection continuum as proposed by Visser et al appears to also hold true in patients with normal healthy eyes. Thus, when should clinicians reach for scleral lenses when providing care to patients with regular corneas?

Great vision correction can make all the difference in a person’s life. As early as my grade school days, I wanted to impact lives in a positive way by providing unique and individualized eye care. In practice today, I recommend daily disposable contact lenses for patients of all ages and professional backgrounds, including new and current contact lens wearers alike, to meet visual demands, enhance wear comfort and promote convenience.

Whether that’s true or not, you shouldn’t be intimidated by multifocal lens fitting.

These tips have helped doctors reduce chair time, see more patients, and develop a reputation as a state-of-the-art contact lens practice.

We asked contact lens fitting experts for their top tips for ODs fitting toric lenses.

For many eye care professionals (ECPs), helping patients see, look and feel their best means being able to offer their patients daily disposable contact lenses. The DAILIES® Choice Program is an opportunity to provide patients with a convenient alternative to weekly and monthly replacement lenses by reducing the price barrier for new wearers with up to $200 in savings on a year’s supply of DAILIES® lenses.

Many optometrists use the “if it aint broke, don’t fix it” excuse for not fitting multifocals. It is time for ODs to get comfortable with multifocal contact lenses and the opportunity they provide our practices as well as the ability they give us to meet modern patient demands.

Fitting toric patients is a breeze today, and we have options to allow those patients to continue to stay in their contact lenses as they become presbyopic.

Disruptive technology is here to stay, and ODs must embrace it as new technologies continue to be developed and patients are eager to get their hands on them.

Improve your scleral fitting skills and your patients’ quality of life

Most ODs could list all the missing items in their contact lens supply line. They could construct a wish list of products they would like to see available in the future. On days when we find ourselves ransacking the contact lens trial room, ODs may think technology is moving too slowly. Perhaps it’s time for some needed perspective.

It’s time to dispel these preconceptions of fitting contact lenses for astigmatism and use new toric lens options as an opportunity to improve patient care.

For many eye care professionals (ECPs), helping patients see, look and feel their best means being able to offer their patients daily disposable contact lenses. The DAILIES® Choice Program is an opportunity to provide patients with a convenient alternative to weekly and monthly replacement lenses by reducing the price barrier for new wearers with up to $200 in savings on a year’s supply of DAILIES® lenses.

Just as ODs develop good habits, there are bad habits that we should avoid. Avoid the following three habits to optimize your patients’ lens wearing experience.

If patients notice a decrease in night vision or have frequent headaches, increased eye fatigue, blurred/distorted vision, the diagnosis could be astigmatism.