Why Soft Lenses Stopped Being Comfortable
Tear production declines with age, and it declines faster in an environment that spends half the year under twenty percent humidity. A soft lens sits in the tear film and depends on it. When the film thins, the lens tightens, the surface deposits build faster, and the last four hours of every day become uncomfortable. Most people conclude they have developed an intolerance to contacts. What has usually happened is that the tear film changed underneath a lens that never did.
A soft lens at seventy-two
- Sits on the eye for twelve to sixteen waking hours
- Draws moisture from a tear film that is already thin
- Interacts with glaucoma drops and other topical medications
- Handling gets harder as dexterity and near vision decline
An overnight lens at seventy-two
- On the eye only during sleep, when the eye is closed and protected
- Nothing on the ocular surface during waking hours at all
- Drops and medications go into a bare eye
- Handled twice a day at a table, not in a hurry
The Honest Limits After Sixty
- Reading glasses do not go away. Ortho-K corrects distance. Presbyopia is a lens problem inside the eye, not a corneal one, and after the mid-forties you will still want readers.
- Prior cataract surgery usually rules it out. An implanted intraocular lens has already set the eye focus. Reshaping the cornea on top of that is rarely appropriate.
- Severe dry eye can rule it out. The same condition that ended soft lens wear can also make overnight wear unwise. Tear film is measured at the consultation.
- Corneal health matters more with age. Endothelial cell density, guttata, and prior surgery all get assessed before any lens is designed.
- Some designs address near vision partially. Results vary considerably, and we describe them as a possibility rather than a promise.
For the general picture on candidacy, see consultation and candidacy and realistic expectations in safety and results.
Golf, Courts, and Four Hours of Glare
The reason this comes up at all is that Sun Lakes is not a sedentary community. Two country club courses, an extensive tennis and pickleball program at IronOaks, cycling groups that leave at six in the morning, and a lot of pool time. Progressive lenses on a golf course are a specific misery: the ball sits in the reading zone at address and the fairway sits in the distance zone, and your head has to negotiate the difference.
Would Ortho-K help my golf game?
If distance blur is what bothers you, quite possibly. With clear unaided distance vision you can use ordinary sunglasses, and you can add inexpensive readers for the scorecard. What Ortho-K will not do is give you a single seamless range of focus. Nothing does, including surgery, without a compromise somewhere.