Contact Lenses

Whether you are interested in contact lenses for special occasions or for the everyday freedom from glasses, our optometrists can advise you whether your eyes and prescription are suitable. We offer a wide range of contact lens types from trusted providers, and these include soft or hard (rigid gas permeable, RGP) lenses.

We also provide specialty contact lens fitting for anterior eye conditions such as keratoconus or contact lenses for myopia control (orthokeratology), with the aid of our corneal topographer.

A contact lens fitting entails additional appointments following your full eye examination, where the optometrist will select the best lenses for your eyes and you are taught how to use and care for them. As the contact lenses sit on the eyes, we recommend more frequent checks to ensure the eyes remain healthy.

Myopia Control and Orthokeratology

Myopia (short-sightedness) is a common eye condition where distance vision is blurred. This occurs when the light which enters the eye focuses in front of the retina rather than on it, typically occurring because the eyeball is too long.

Myopia generally begins during childhood and progresses until the child stops growing. Managing the progression of myopia is important as increasing levels can increase the risk of certain eye conditions later in life such as retinal detachments, myopic macular degeneration, glaucoma and cataracts.

Childhood myopia can occur from numerous factors that cause the eyeball to grow too quickly, whether the factors are genetic, environmental or simply unique to the child’s characteristics.

Fortunately, there are now different means to help slow myopic progression by focusing the peripheral vision independently of the central vision. The most effective ways involve the use of specialty contact lenses that our optometrists are able to prescribe and include both special soft or rigid orthokeratology lenses. There are also now a couple of spectacle lens options, the Miyosmart which is made by Hoya and Essilor's Stellest. These have now been shown to be virtually as effective as contact lenses at slowing down the progression. Low does atropine drops can also be effective although this is probably the least effective option now.

For more information about childhood myopia, please visit www.mykidsvision.org

Orthokeratology

Orthokeratology is a safe, non-surgical and reversible procedure of using rigid contact lens to temporarily reshape the cornea, with the purpose of reducing myopia (short sightedness) and eliminating the need to wear correcting spectacles or contact lenses during the day.

A rigid contact lens is worn at night, to gently flatten the front of the eye and reshape the cornea to the correct shape for focused vision the following day. The effect is stable but not permanent, and without the lens in place the cornea will slowly return to its original shape over a few weeks.

Orthokeratology is not painful although there will be some awareness of the lenses at the beginning of treatment. The lenses will not be felt when asleep.

The fitting process requires multiple high quality topographical scans to be taken of the cornea of each eye. A custom designed lens is then ordered and fitted to each eye. This session also involves teaching lens care and correct insertion and removal techniques.

Initially, multiple aftercare sessions are required over the first few months to ensure that the contact lens fit is correct, the eyes remain healthy and that good vision is being achieved.