Can Contacts Correct My Astigmatism?
If you have astigmatism you may have heard that contact lenses cannot solve your problem. While it used to be true that some contacts could not correct astigmatism, there are now several options in contact lenses that can help you see clearly.
Anatomy of astigmatism
The cornea is the clear front part of the eye covering the pupil. When light enters the eye, it first passes through the cornea, then through the pupil and lens and lands on the retina which is the lining on the inside back of the eye.
Astigmatism is caused by an irregularly shaped cornea or lens in the eye. When light passes through a cornea that is not uniformly round, the light does not all focus at the same point inside the eye and vision is blurry. The amount of astigmatism can vary from barely noticeable to very severe. You can find out if you have astigmatism by asking your eye care professional or by looking at your glasses prescription. If your prescription has three numbers instead of just one, you have astigmatism.
How do contact lenses correct astigmatism?
Contact lenses are small disks of plastic that are carefully shaped to help correct the errors in where the light focuses on the retina. For patients without astigmatism, contact lenses are uniformly round with a smooth curve like a ping pong ball. But for patients with astigmatism, the contact lens must compensate for the irregularities in the cornea.
For many years, the only contact lenses available to correct astigmatism were hard lenses, which are now known as rigid gas permeable or RGP lenses. Because the plastic in these lenses doesn’t change shape, the cornea of the eye is encouraged to adjust to match the shape of the lens, resulting in clearer vision and astigmatism correction.
Special soft contact lenses called toric lenses are also available to correct astigmatism. Toric lenses are made from the same material as regular soft contacts.
We value and respect the experiences of all of our HERWriters, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.
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nice definition...
May 19, 2012 - 5:29amThis Comment