Scleral Lenses Patient Testimonial

While COA specializes in eye surgeries for a variety of conditions we also offer services in custom contacts and scleral lenses. At both of our full-service optical locations, we are pleased to offer standard and specialty contact lens examinations and fittings. We recently had a patient so happy with her Scleral lenses; she wanted to share her story about her experience at COA.

Monae had 20/50 vision and wore contacts her entire life. “The one thing I hated most was driving at night. The glare I would see around lights made it pretty much impossible to drive.” Monae has a condition known as keratoconus. Keratoconus is an eye disease in which the usually spherical cornea thins and begins to bulge into a conical shape. The conical shape defocuses light as it hits the cornea causing distorted and blurred vision. Many people with this condition find it hard to wear contact lenses because of the discomfort it can cause to the person’s already thin cornea. “I didn’t really know anything about scleral lenses but Dr. Hartman encouraged me to try scleral’ s and when I found out I could get 20/20 vision I was all in.”

Scleral contact lenses are usually more comfortable to wear than smaller RGP contact lenses. The cornea is filled with thousands of nerve fibers that make it very sensitive to the environment. Because it is so sensitive, most people can feel a regular contact lens as it moves around on the eye. A scleral lens rests mainly on the conjunctiva and sclera. The conjunctiva is much less sensitive than the cornea, producing much less awareness and discomfort. A patient who finds a rigid gas permeable lens intolerable may be able to wear a scleral lens easily with little to no discomfort. This was perfect for Monae because of her condition; people with keratoconus cannot go under LASIK like many others with vision issues because it could actually make their vision worse. The only effective treatment is custom contact lenses.

Scleral lenses are a little bigger than traditional contacts, that may scare some people, Monae says, “If they’re going to allow you to see better than that is all that matters. I would tell anyone hesitant to try it, it may sound scary but overall it is nothing but comfortable.” Monae now says she has no problem driving at night and the glare has been reduced drastically. “I’m asking everyone if they want to take a road trip cause I’m finally comfortable driving at night!”

We are so happy to help patients like Monae improve their vision and make them more confident in their everyday tasks. If you have any questions about our specialty contact lens examination and fittings please feel free to schedule an appointment.