In keratoconus, vision can be corrected with glasses or regular soft contact lens but as KC progresses the distortion caused by the irregular corneal surface cannot be corrected by contact lenses. This raises a need for more complex contact lens designs.
Our Specially Trained Optometrists will do a trial and decide which type of Contact Lens best fits over your eye. Contact lens fitting is done very carefully and requires frequent checkups to maintain good vision.
There is a limited role of soft lenses in Keratoconus because the soft lens drapes over the irregular corneal surface and the front surface of the lens assumes the irregular surface of the cornea without trapping a fluid reservoir. There is no improvement in the effective refracting surface over the original corneal surface.
There are some specially designed thicker soft lenses that retain more of a rigid shape and may contribute to the liquid lens effect to some extent. These are the designs being used for Keratoconus, and they are helpful in mild to moderate cases.
Rigid Gas Permeable lenses mask the underlying irregular cornea and function as the new refractive surface of the eye, with the tear film filling in the space between the front of the eye and the back of the contact lens. “Rigid” defines the type of lens. “Gas Permeable” describes the lens material. There are many different RGP lens designs.
