CLINICAL

  diversify your portfolio

Say Yes to RGPs

What place do gas permeable lenses have in your contact lens portfolio?

JEFFRY D. GERSON, O.D., F.A.A.O.

Soft lenses have cast a shadow on RGPs. With “discomfort” as a primary reason for contact lens dropout, this makes sense. Yet, RGPs remain an important option because they provide crisp and clear vision — something some of our patients who desire contact lens wear cannot achieve with soft lenses.

When we, as optometrists, can provide products that improve our patients’ quality of life, those patients become loyal to our practices and refer others. Another point: Offering RGPs instills in patients that contact lenses are medical devices that require a trained professional and not a commodity they can purchase online or through other sources.

Here, I discuss the patients who can benefit from RGPs.

Astigmatic patients

How often have you had patients lament that their previous eye doctor told them contact lens wear wasn’t possible because of astigmatism? This is the perfect opportunity to educate these patients about RGP lenses. In addition, these patients are ideal candidates for RGPs because their motivation to lessen their dependence on their glasses instills patience with the fitting process and makes the appropriate fitting/professional fees palatable. Ultimately, they become ecstatic with the results and you, the doctor who provided the solution.

Presbyopic patients

It’s no secret that presbyopic patients are a hard demographic to please when it comes to vision correction. In addition, many desire contact lens wear to maintain a youthful appearance. Given these facts, it makes sense to have scleral, translating bifocal and aspheric RGP multifocals available.

And as is the case with astigmatic patients, presbyopic patients are motivated to get rid of their glasses, making them ideal candidates for RGP multifocals. How often have you had a patient take a prescription for a multifocal RGP to fill elsewhere? This is not likely to happen, as your patient will understand the complex nature of these fits and be less likely to try “shopping” elsewhere.

Irregular cornea patients

Patients who have corneal dystrophies/degenerations, post-surgical ectasias and, most commonly, keratoconus are shown to benefit from RGP lenses as well. Of note here is that these conditions sometimes qualify patients for medically necessary contact lenses, meaning the patient’s insurance will pay the appropriate professional fees and for the material charges as well — a win for these patients and your practice.

Another point: Given these patients’ irregular corneas and past experiences with eye doctors, they often have no expectations of success with RGPs. As a result, once you can fit them, they’ll sing your praises to friends and family, ushering in similar patients.

The full portfolio

Though we are not likely to see a lab representative or other salesperson trying to sell us on RGPs, these lenses must stay an integral part of our contact lens portfolio if we are to remain our patients’ “go-to” eyecare practitioner. Let patients know there is more to contact lenses than the ability to purchase them online. OM

DR. GERSON PRACTICES AT GRIN EYECARE IN OLATHE, KAN. IT IS A FULL-SCOPE COMBINED O.D./M.D. PRACTICE. E-MAIL HIM AT JGERSON@HOTMAIL.COM. TO COMMENT ON THIS ARTICLE, E-MAIL OPTOMETRICMANAGEMENT@GMAIL.COM.