switched from rgp's to toric lenses

[Joe Bloggs]

since april i have been using rgps with a lot of problems with them, red eyes, constant discomfort, horrible pain in my eyes when i wake up as if something is inside. i switched to toric ones today and they seem ok. the vision isnt as good though. my left eye is my good eye so torics help with this eye the most. the right eye not so much, if any at all. still, the vision is better than wearing glasses. Any of you using torics? I can hardly even notice them in my eyes. The comfort they provide compared to the rpg's is immense. Was this a wise move?
my vision with them is like in between wearing glasses and rgp's.

[Joe Bloggs]

bump

[GarethB]

What material is your toric lens?

Both my lenses are RGP's one is a toric, the other a Rose K.

[Pat A]

Hi Joe
Sorry - missed your original post. I (did/do) wear Toric lenses (I assume you mean "soft" Torics -never heard of RGP torics... ). I am trying out some different soft lenses at the moment which are not Toric but that is by the by. Toric lenses correct astigmatism but will mould to the shape of your eye, so if you have a steep cone they won't help much. (I don't actually have KC - but something else which gives similar visual symptoms)

My vision was definitely better than wearing glasses which were next to useless, but not as good as with RGP's which I couldn't tolerate. I guess at the end of the day we have to make choices - and as I am a wimp comfort had to be the primary factor for me. But I can't drive at night with them whereas I could with RGP's - if I could have stood the things in my eyes - which I couldn't - and I have to accept that .

Hope that helps.

Pat

[Joe Bloggs]

So what are torics? are they the same thing as kerasofts? i been using them for over a month now and i like the comfort though i miss the level of vision provided b rgp's and sometimes think to myself...god this movie im watching in HD would look even better with RGP's lol. or text i see on the screen at work etc. They give good enough vision i suppose.

[Andrew MacLean]

Begins to sound like we need to hear from Lynne!

Andrew

[Lynn White]

Thank you Andrew!!

Joe...

Toric soft lenses merely mean soft lenses that have a correction for astigmatism. Many people with "normal" eyes wear soft torics. All it means is that the lenses are made with 2 power meridians at right angles to each other.

KeraSoft is a different thing. This is a soft lens that is made specifically for keratoconus and is thicker than a normal soft toric lens. In fact, KeraSoft can be made without any astigmatic correction, so the two things are NOT the same.

Several things here to consider. Soft lenses generally give less clear vision that an RGP. An RGP is rigid and can mould the cornea to its own shape. So while its giving you good vision it generally is also reshaping the front of your eye. Soft lenses do not do that to anywhere near the same extent - but also, by definition, some of the distortion created by KC shows "through" the lens. However, they ARE very much more comfortable, so often there is a trade off between comfort and clarity.

One reason why your vision may be off is that your cornea is settling back down after coming out of an RGP, so it may be possible to tweak your lenses to get better vision. Secondly, if you are actually wearing KeraSoft (I am still not sure if you are?), then the design has been upgraded recently and you may get better vision with the newer version.

Contact lens fitting is very personal and one man's success story is another's failure... many people use RGP's successfully for 30 years - others can never tolerate them. There is never a single right answer!