New RGP fits decline in wake of vCJD scare

The Eurolens Research survey, sponsored by 11 contact lens firms, recorded a reduction in the proportion of new patients fitted with rigid lenses. When RGP lenses were fitted, they were more likely to be 'complex' design lenses, such as multifocals or torics. It appears that practitioners are more likely than in previous years to opt for soft lenses for simple refractive cases (single vision and spherical ametropia), but are still using RGPs in more difficult cases (higher astigmatism or presbyopia). The results have come from a fifth annual survey, which received replies from 148 practitioners derived from 1,426 contact lens fits. (See pages 22-23 for further details.) Soft contact lenses accounted for nearly 94 per cent of new fits and 72 per cent of refits. After four years of strong year-on-year growth, daily disposable lenses may have reached saturation point at around 33 per cent of new soft lens fits. Today's contact lens fitting is dominated by planned replacement soft lenses, with 88 per cent of new soft lens patients - and 84 per cent of all new patients - fitted with either daily disposable or monthly replacement lenses. Around a third of extended wear fits were with non-silicone hydrogel lenses. The Eurolens Research was sponsored by Bausch & Lomb, Alcon Laboratories (UK), Allergan, Biocompatibles International, Ciba Vision (UK), CooperVision, Hydron, Ocular Sciences, Optical Express, Sauflon Pharmaceuticals and Vistakon.