RGP contacts not centered on eye??!
Question: Just been wearing RGP contacts for about a month now. I have keratoconus and I am on my second pair for the fitting. My night vision with these are horrible. I see streaks from every light source and my eyes are now very sensitive to light. I squint all the time and I have to move my head up and look down everytime I look at something or talk to someone. I've looked in the mirror at the RGPs and noticed that they are not centered in reference to my pupil. The contacts are covering most of the upper half and barely covering the bottom part. Is this supposed to be right?? Aren't they supposed to be more centered on my eye?? Anyone have any suggestions for me to say to my optometrist??
Answers: Just been wearing RGP contacts for about a month now. I have keratoconus and I am on my second pair for the fitting. My night vision with these are horrible. I see streaks from every light source and my eyes are now very sensitive to light. I squint all the time and I have to move my head up and look down everytime I look at something or talk to someone. I've looked in the mirror at the RGPs and noticed that they are not centered in reference to my pupil. The contacts are covering most of the upper half and barely covering the bottom part. Is this supposed to be right?? Aren't they supposed to be more centered on my eye?? Anyone have any suggestions for me to say to my optometrist??
I hesitate to muddy up your doctor's water with advise when I am not even there to examine the eye. BUT, some thoughts. Most keratoconic patients have an apex (steepest part to the cornea) that is displaced inferiorly. Therefore, many times a gas perm lens will actually tend to decenter downward along with the decentered apex. The fact that this lens is decentered upwards makes me wonder whether it is too flat and therefore is decentering upward associated with adherence to the lid as the lid elevates after a blink. Also, to get a gas perm lens to center well it is sometimes necessary to make the overall diameter of the len larger than would be normally used in a non keratoconic eye and also make the optical zone of the lens larger. In order to accomplish exactly what is needed it is many times necessary to deal with a contact lens lab directly and tell them specifically what type of a custom fit is needed. It is very possible, though, that your optometrist is already trying these things. Fitting a keratoconic cornea is definitely many times challenging.
RGP contacts can take a long time to get used to, especially if you have keratoconus, although it sounds like they aren't quite right. It can be difficult to fit keratoconic lenses, so sometimes you may need several pairs made before you end up with a good one, and sometimes it is not possible to get a really good fit. Explain your concerns to your optometrist.