CONTACT LENSES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26472, 28 May 1947, Page 4

CONTACT LENSES

FIRST USE IN DUNEDIN NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR GLASSES Contact lenses, plastic " glasses ” which fit under the eyelids conforming to the shape of the eyeball, and which are virtually invisible, are now being supplied by opticians in Dunedin. „ , When this form of optical aid was perfected several years ago, it was suggested that they would eventually take the place of ordinary spectacles, but a local optician explained yesterday that the use of the new lenses was limited to cases of certain optical defects, and it was highly improbable that they would ever replace glasses. Cases of high astigmatism and myopia and conical cornea were most conveniently treated with contact lenses, and one case at present being fitted in Dunedin had benefited to an amazing degree. The lenses were manufactured in Auckland, and the total cost of fitting and supplying them was After an optician had decided that contact lenses were desirable, the Daily Times informant stated, the patient’s eyes were anaestheticed by a doctor, and a mould was taken of them. This was sent to Auckland, where a lens was ground so as to fit the eye exactly and then returned to the optician. The normal process of testing the vision of the patient was then carried out, and the lenses returned to Auckland to be made the required strength. These lenses had been on sale in the United States for several years, the optician stated, and it had been reported that they were. being sold across the counter in certain cases. In view of the accuracy required in fitting the lenses, this was highly inadvisable, as a badly fitting lense would cause extreme irritation to the cornea instead of resting on the sclera or “white” of the eye. The space between the lens and the cornea was filled with special saline solution which bathed the cornea and eliminated corneal scarring. The advantages of contact lenses to sportsmen, such as swimmers and boxers, were obviously great he went on, because they would protect the eye to a large degree, whereas ordinary glasses would be in danger of splintering.