Vision Rehabilitation: Specialty Contact Lenses

What Is Vision Rehabilitation?

In keratoconus treatment, once the progression of the disease has been halted, specialty contact lenses are used to improve visual quality. These lenses mask the cornea’s irregularities to provide sharp vision.

For patients whose disease progression has been halted with cross-linking, or in stable cases where progression has already stopped, the primary goal is to improve visual quality.

Rigid Gas-Permeable (RGP) Lenses

• How it works: It sits stably over the cornea’s irregular surface; the “tear lens” that forms between them creates a smooth optical surface.
• Advantage: Provides high visual quality.
• Challenge: Comfort is lower due to its rigid structure; centering can be difficult in severely cone-shaped corneas.

Scleral Lenses

• Structure: Has a much larger diameter; rests on the sclera (the white part of the eye).
• Critical feature: Does not touch the delicate, cone-shaped corneal tissue at any point.
• Advantages: They may offer advantages in terms of comfort, help protect the cornea, and provide a noticeable improvement in visual quality, including in advanced cases.

Hybrid Lenses

• Design: A rigid gas-permeable center with a soft lens skirt.
• Purpose: To combine the optical quality of RGP with the comfort of a soft lens.