Sam Quintero

Silicone-acrylate contact lenses for myopia control : 3-year results

One hundred myopic children between the ages of 8 and 13 years were fitted with Paraperm O2plus silicone-acrylate contact lenses. After 3 years of lens wear, the mean increase in myopia for the 56 subjects remaining in the study was 0.48 D (±0.70) D as compared with 1.53 (±0.81) D for a group of spectacle-wearing myopes matched for initial age and initial refractive error. The mean change in corneal refracting power for the contact lens wearers was a decrease (corneal flattening) of 0.37 (±0.32) D. Assuming that little or no corneal change would have occurred in the absence of the contact lenses, we may conclude that corneal flattening (as measured by the keratometer) accounts for less than half of the effect of contact lenses in controlling myopia progression. A possible explanation for this disparity is that although the keratometer provides a valid measurement of corneal refracting power for a “normal” cornea, it fails to provide a valid measurement for a cornea that has been flattened by wearing a contact lens.

Predicting refractive astigmatism: a suggested simplification of Javal's rule.

ABSTRACT In the period of almost 100 years since Javal proposed an empirically determined rule for the prediction of refractive astigmatism on the basis of corneal astigmatism, many authors have made suggestions for the modification of “Javals Rule.” These modifications, rather than being based on clinical data, have been based on concepts of mechanisms that can contribute to refractive astigmatism, but in most cases the modifications do nothing more than complicate the process of predicting refractive astigmatism, with the result that only Javals original rule is widely used. In this paper, keratometric and refractive data for three groups of subjects are used to demonstrate that a simplified version of Javals rule is more effective in predicting refractive astigmatism than is Javals rule itself.

Use of silicone-acrylate contact lenses for the control of myopia: results after two years of lens wear

Although a number of reports have been published concerning the use of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) contact lenses for the control of myopia, there have been no reports of the use of gas permeable contact lenses for this purpose. In the study reported here, 100 myopic children between the ages of 8 and 13 years were fitted with Paraperm O2plus silicone-acrylate contact lenses to be worn for a period of 3 years. Lenses were fitted by the alignment method, most lenses having diameters from 8.5 to 9.0 mm. At the end of 2 years 60 subjects remained in the study, 53 of whom were wearing their lenses on a regular basis and the other 7 were irregular wearers. Mean increases in myopia during the 2-year period were found to be 0.28 D for the subjects who wore their lenses regularly and 0.93 D for the irregular wearers, compared to 0.80 D for a group of 31 age-matched single vision spectacle lens wearers. Mean corneal refracting power was found to decrease (the cornea flattened) 0.33 D for the regular wearers as compared to an increase of 0.14 D for the irregular wearers and a decrease of 0.13 D for the spectacle wearers. Mean changes in axial length were an increase of 0.1 mm for the regular wearers, an increase of 0.4 mm for the irregular wearers, and an increase of 0.6 mm for the spectacle wearers. These results show that approximately one-half of the effect of the contact lenses in controlling myopia can be attributed to corneal flattening and support Stones suggestion that contact lenses worn by young myopes may have an effect in controlling the axial length of the eye.

Rigid gas-permeable contact lenses for myopia control: effects of discontinuation of lens wear.

Conventionally fitted Paraperm O2plus contact lenses were worn for 44 months by 23 myopic children, who discontinued lens wear for 2.5 months and then resumed lens wear with Fluoroperm 30 lenses for a period of 8 months. Mean changes in myopia were: (1) an increase of 0.76 D during the initial 44 months of lens wear, (2) a further increase of 0.27 D during the 2.5 months when lenses were not worn, and (3) a decrease of 0.02 D during the 8-month period of Fluoroperm 30 lens wear. These results show that the effect of rigid gas-permeable lenses on myopia progression is diminished if lens wear is discontinued; however, the mean increase in myopia for these children was significantly less than would have been expected if glasses had been worn for the entire 54.5-month period. The results after discontinuation and then resumption of lens wear show that the effect of contact lenses in controlling the progression of myopia could not be accounted for entirely on the basis of corneal flattening as measured by the keratometer, therefore reinforcing the conclusion that corneal flattening due to rigid lens wear takes place primarily at the corneal apex, rather than in the zone of the cornea measured by the keratometer.

Houston Myopia Control Study: a randomized clinical trial. Part I. Background and design of the study.

ABSTRACT The Houston Myopia Control Study is a 3‐year randomized clinical trial in which each of 213 myopic children was placed in either a single vision (standard treatment) group, a +1.00 D add treatment group, or a +2.00 D add treatment group, on the basis of a randomized procedure. Subjects for the three treatment groups were matched on the basis of sex, age, and the initial amount of myopia. The study involves two groups of investigators: an evaluation team, whose task has been to evaluate candidates before entering the study and to reevaluate each subject on a yearly basis for the 3‐year period, and a patient care team, whose task has been to prescribe glasses for each subject as well as to counsel subjects and their parents in the correct use of the glasses and to provide a follow‐up examination every six months for the duration of the study. Once the glasses had been prescribed, members of the evaluation team were not permitted to know which subjects wore single vision lenses and which wore bifocals. In the interest of good patient care, members of the patient care team knew which subjects wore single vision lenses and which wore +1.00 D add or +2.00 D add bifocals. In this report, the authors discuss theories concerning the etiology of myopia, methods that have been used in an attempt to control the progression of myopia, and the design of the current study. Further reports will present the results of the study on the basis of the data collected by each of the two study teams.

Opaque contact lens color choices among women of different ethnic groups

Purpose. The opaque contact lens (OCL) market is profitable and expanding. This pilot study sought to identify OCL color preferences among women of three ethnic groups, African American (A), white (W), and Hispanic Americans (H). Methods. Sixty-three brown-eyed female subjects (19 A; 22 W; 22 H), 18 to 35 years of age, with uncorrected near visual accuity of at least 20/50 were recruited. Each subject was presented with OCLs of three different color pattern designs in each of four colors (blue, green, gray, and hazel). The subjects viewed their appearance in a mirror while wearing each lens. Once all lenses had been observed, the subjects chose their lens color preference. Results. Using the nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis test, an ethnic preference was shown for all but the gray contact lenses. In group A 47.4% rated the hazel lens as their first choice whereas 0% chose the blue lens. In contrast, 45.5% of group C chose the blue lens over the other colors but did not favor the hazel lens, which was their first choice only 4.5% of the time. Group H demonstrated the most diversity in color preference, however, 36.4% chose green as their overall lenscolor preference. Conclusions Distinct differences exist in OCL color preferences among the three ethnic groups studied. Improved understanding of this ethnic difference could increase the efficiency of the trial lens process while possibly decreasing inventory costs when one ethnic group dominates a practice patient base.