Contact lens technologies may aid in increasing your portfolio

Technological advancements in anterior and posterior imaging and evaluation, along with research and development continue to drive contact lens wear success, via happy patients, at all levels of practice.

Here, I review the specific benefits of these technologies, so O.D.s can continue to grow their contact lens portfolio and help additional patients.

SMOOTH LANDINGS

New technologies have increased our abilities to customize scleral lenses.

Scleral profilometry facilitates empirical fitting and provides the data for designing quadrant-specific haptics and toric central and peripheral curves. Additionally, proprietary scanning software, or impression technology, creates unique lens solutions for each patient. Find a listing of these and other diagnostic tools for improved fitting in “Equip Your Scleral Lens Clinic for Success” at bit.ly/0121ScleralEquipment .

SURFACE MATTERS

Research and development in both contact lens manufacturing and contact lens care systems continue to focus on optimizing surface chemistry to enhance lens wettability and contact lens comfort. Read about some of this research in “Cater to Comfort in Daily Contact Lenses,” at bit.ly/0521CLComfort .

That said, a stable tear film is critical to vision quality and a healthy ocular surface. Thus, numerous technologies are available to measure the health of the tear film, so therapy can be prescribed to enable contact lens wear. Find a listing in “Discuss DED Diagnostics,” bit.ly/0120DEDDiagnostics .

SPECIFIC PRESCRIPTIONS

As an example, myopia management is a growing area, with contact lens options that include center distance multifocal contact lenses and FDA-approved therapy MiSight (CooperVision) and Acuvue Abiliti Overnight Therapeutic Lenses (Johnson & Johnson Vision). (Other manufacturers have products in the pipeline. Follow O.D. Notebook [optometricmanagement.com/news/2021 ] to see these announcements.)

To best manage these patients, methods for measuring axial elongation and corneal radius are helpful. Read more about these technologies in “Diagnose Myopia,” at bit.ly/0620DiagnoseMyopia .

BUILD ON THE EVALUATION

Building on a careful evaluation and analysis of our patients’ visual and ocular health needs, we can now access our updated contact lens toolkit to deliver an even higher level of care. OM

DR. RESNICK is president and managing partner at Drs. Farkas, Kassalow, Resnick and Associates, a contact lens and anterior segment specialty practice in New York. She is a diplomate in the Cornea, Contact Lens and Refractive Technology section of the AAO, a diplomate of the ABO and a fellow of the Scleral Lens Education Society.