Factors affecting the comfort of contact lenses

Great advances made in contact lenses in the last 20 years have resulted in a change of emphasis on how we manage our contact lens wearers. The arrival of high oxygen transmissible silicone hydrogel (SiH) materials has moved some of the clinical focus from signs and symptoms associated with poor corneal oxygen supply to another important factor – discomfort, which is for most responsible for contact lens dropouts.1

Busy eye care professionals (ECPs) focus their attention on contact lens comfort during the first few minutes of wear during the fitting appointment. However, while initial comfort is important, the greater challenge facing wearers is comfort at the end of the day, and at the end of the lens life.