Soft toric versus spherical contact lenses in myopes with low astigmatism

Abstract

In this investigation, the success of fitting low astigmatic myopes (0.75−1.25 of refractive cylinder) with spherical versus toric soft contact lenses was evaluated. Three groups of myopes, low (−1. 75 to −4.00), moderate (−4.25 to −5. 75), and high (− 6.25 to −11.25), were examined to determine whether toric correction was equally important in all groups. Twenty-one myopes were included in the study, with 31 eyes qualifying by the amount of astigmatism. All patients were currently wearing Wesley-Jessen Durasoft 2 or 3 spherical contact lenses, which were replaced with new lenses at the beginning of the study. Base line Snellen visual acuity and Vistech contrast sensitivity were measured and repeated at each study visit. The spherical soft lenses were worn for 1 week and then patients were refit with either Wesley-Jessen Durasoft 2 Optifit toric or Durasoft 3 toric. After 2 weeks, patients were again evaluated. Our results indicate that patients with all levels of myopia achieved better Snellen visual acuities with toric than with spherical contact lenses. Contrast sensitivity results were not significantly different between the two groups, but there was a distinct trend toward improvement with tonic lenses. In addition, patient questionnaires reflected that 71% of the patients preferred toric over spherical lenses.