Does contact lenses make the cornea thinner ?

[chriser00]

Hi,

During last 6 months I was made CCL in both eyes. Now I want to do something to improve my vision. I've read in some websites that both hard contact lenses and softprems may make the cornea thinner and improve keratoconus, so if it is possible one should avoid them.

Is it true ? Do you have such problems ?

One more question. Which contact lenses is better to choose : hard contact lenses or softprems ? Are any of them safer for my eyes ?

Thank you for help.

Best regards

Chris

[Sweet]

Chris,

There has been so many debates here about lenses making our corneas thinner, but I can only say that obviously putting something directly into your eye would be classed as a foreign body and something which shouldn't be there. We are told so often not to over-wear lenses as our eyes need to have enough oxygen, so you would not be alone in thinking that putting a piece of plastic in your eye was scratching the cells on the cornea. I am unable to tolerate a RGP lens in my right eye anymore so can only put up with it by piggy backing it, (putting it on top of a plain soft lens which acts as a cushion).

On deciding which lenses to try it is mostly up to the optom treating you. They will advise you on what they professionally think you need and you are then able to question it and find something which is the best for you. Not everyone starts off with a soft lens and goes from there as there isn't really a set pathway on which lenses to begin with and progress though. Some optoms only work with say RGP's so you will need to go somewhere else if you would like to try something different.

My best advice is to read the posts here and get a general idea as to lenses and what types there are, then go to see a professional and get their opinion on what they think you need. You can change lenses as many times as you like, which is why I am very much in favour of friends here trying everything before jumping in to have a graft. Lenses can be removed or changed, but sadly a surgical procedure cannot. Some people also manage very well with glasses, so this could be worth a try.

Hoping that this has helped, best of luck with it! Love Claire X x X

[Andrew MacLean]

The best lens for your eye is the lens best suited to your situation

I'm afraid that keratoconus varies so much (with our without crosslinking) that you need to take advice from a good optometrist who has experience of fitting KC eyes.

All the best

Andrew