Do your children wish they didn't have to wear glasses for school? Are you unsuitable for laser vision correction?

Vision improvement options for spectacle wearers have never been better. Laser vision correction continues to be the most popular option for permanently eliminating the need for glasses in the widest range of patients (and is reportedly the most popular procedure in all medicine at present). However laser vision correction is not the only vision improvement procedure around, and in any case is not suitable for children under the age of eighteen .

Orthokeratology (or Ortho-K for short) is not a new concept, but has recently become a lot more popular for a number of reasons, one of which is its suitability for young children, in addition to adults. Ortho-K is a vision correcting procedure whereby the patient wears special contact lenses during sleeping hours.  On their removal in the morning, vision is perfect as though wearing glasses. Patients can function all day on the computer, sports, swimming, driving etc all without spectacles or contacts.

The contact lens has the effect of slightly flattening the cornea, altering the focus of the eye and achieving normal unaided vision. Unlike in laser vision correction where the flattening created is permanent, Ortho-K creates a temporary change, and the lens therefore needs to be worn each night to maintain the effect. With lower prescriptions however, sometimes the lens needs to be worn only 3-4 times per week.

It is suitable for near sighted (myopic) patients with prescriptions up to about -5.5, with little or no cylinder. The main potential complication is infection, although this, like with regular contact lens wearing, is rarely a problem with careful sterilising and management of the lenses.

So why are these lenses suddenly much more popular? Firstly the lens technology has improved, in terms of the lens material and design, both of which contribute to their success and safety. The FDA has also approved the technique. Secondly a number of reports have come out showing that in children, the lenses appear to slow down or stop all together the increase in the glasses prescription. This is particularly relevent for at risk children who have family members already with very high prescriptions, or where the prescription already appears to be climbing rapidly.

So if laser vision correction is not for you at present, but you still want freedom from your glasses dependency and contacts during the day, Ortho-K should certainly be considered, and for children it may be that we have at last found a way of preventing higher prescriptions

For more information, please contact the clinic or Dr Fink directly via email (see left  side of page)