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Contact Lens types and which have what kinds of problems (submitted by Mardi):
CONTACT LENSES POST T
(RGP LENSES)
Fitting of RGP lenses- submitted by Mardi/Canada:
Longevity of RGP lenses- submitted by Mardi/Canda:
Caring for RGP Lenses- submitted by Denise/AZ:
Overview of RGP Lenses - submitted by Denise/AZ:
* Fuchs' Dystrophy patient wearing contact lenses posting board message:
----- Original Message -----
From: Karen P
Sent: Monday, August 27, 2007 1:54 PM
Subject: FuchsSupport Contacts with fuchs' Ok, I had posted earlier that I called my RGP specialist's
technician and she was going to call me back. Believe
it or not, my RGP specialist HERSELF called me and
talked with me this afternoon. She is an optometrist
specialist in contact lenses for this eye dr's office that
houses about 10 opthalmologists, cornea specialists,
retina specialist, and optometrists, including my
fuchs' specialist.
Let me go back just a bit (you'll understand why in
a bit) and talk about cataract surgery with fuchs'.
Cataract surgery with fuchs' dystrophy is risky....
it can possibly accelerate the disease. However,
-IF the fuchs' isn't very advanced yet AND
- IF the cataract isn't very large or hard, AND
- IF the surgeon doing the cat. surgery is someone who
is experienced with doing surgery on diseased corneas
(preferrably someone who routinely does T's on fuchs'
patients successfully),
...if ALL 3 conditions are met, it is less risky than if
any one of the 3 are NOT met. The fewer of the 3
conditions are met, the higher the risk of accelerating
the disease by doing cataract surgery.
Now, with that review stated, the same thing applies
to wearing contacts with fuchs'. This is what I learned
today from my RGP specialist. She explained that all
contact lenses will probably create more corneal
swelling... however, the fuchs' is creating the swelling
(edema) from the back of the cornea, and the contact
lens is doing it from the FRONT of the cornea. The less
edema there is in the cornea from the BACK due to
the fuchs', the less wearing a soft contact will hurt
the vision from the FRONT.
Just like with cataract surgery, there is a
list of things that, the more of the conditions
are met in the list, the less risky wearing
contacts are with fuchs' patients. Wearing all
contact lenses create more risk for fuchs' patients
than NOT wearing the contact lens. However,
the more of these conditions are met, the less the
risk is of accelerating the disease. This list is:
- The fuchs' is not advanced. If the disease is already
accelerating, the contact lens may speed up the
already-advancing problem.
- The less corneal edema the better (I mentioned this
already).
- The contact must be a soft one. The best for this are
Accuview (sp?) Advanced or Accuview Oasis. I didn't
look these up, so I may have misspelled them. I'm just
writing them down based on what I heard her say... and
may have misunderstood them.
- The patient MUST follow directions PRECISELY as to
changing and caring for the contacts
- The dr and patient both must watch it very very carefully.
If there is ANY change in vision for the worse, the patient must
discontinue IMMEDIATELY and contact the dr a.s.a.p.
My RGP specialist told me that she has been prescribing contact
lenses for her fuchie patients based on the criteria I listed above.
I need to note that I have already been urging all fuchie members
to be very very aware constantly... CONSCIOUSLY AWARE....
of what they are and aren't seeing well, and what is changing when.
That would go along with that last criteria.
Ok, I admit it. I have been hearing for many years that fuchs'
patients MUST NOT wear contact lenses. Now I know that
some of them CAN wear them... but only certain types,
under certain conditions, with very close monitoring by the
dr and the patient both.
So..... it's up to you. Just as with cataract surgery, the more
of the conditions are met, the less risk there is of accelerating
the disease faster than it already is.
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