What are custom contact lenses and why would my lens fitter say I need them?
Custom contact lenses by definition are any lenses made to order. The majority of lenses used today are considered pre-manufactured or disposable lenses. These are the brands you might see advertised in magazines and on television such as Acuvue or the Ciba Night and Day. Disposable lenses come in set parameters for both fit and corrective power. The average disposable lens comes in powers ranging from about +6.00 to -8.00 (with many exceptions).
So theoretically any person requiring a lens that falls outside the range of pre-manufactured lenses will require a custom contact lens. This includes either fitting parameters, available vision correction, or both.
Custom contact lenses can theoretically be made to fit almost any eye. In fact, each and every gas permeable contact lens is a custom lens. If you wear GP’s, your lens fitter specified parameters such as fitting curve, peripheral curves, diameter, material, and of course visual correction.
Custom soft lenses can be designed in much the same manner. An experienced lens designer can customize a lens for almost any eye, however this is not a challenge all eye care professionals are willing to undertake. Designing any lens is part science and part art form. So if your lens fitter said you may need custom contact lenses and he/she is willing to design some for you, you are probably in good hands.
