Where to Start
Most people arrive here from one of three situations. Find yours and follow that thread rather than trying to read everything.
- A parent whose child keeps needing a stronger prescription. Read the Parent Guide to Ortho-K first, then Ortho-K vs Atropine to understand the two main myopia control options.
- An adult who wants out of glasses and is weighing surgery. Read Ortho-K vs LASIK, then Realistic Expectations before you look at price.
- Someone who already knows the basics and wants logistics. Go to Lens Care and Hygiene, Adaptation Guides, and The Process.
Guides for Parents
Parents carry the practical load of a myopia control program. You are the one buying the solution, supervising the routine, packing the case for a sleepover, and deciding whether this is worth the money. These pages are written for that job.
- Parent Guide to Ortho-K. What progressive myopia actually means, how overnight lenses work for children, who handles insertion at what age, school and sports, sleepovers and travel, safety, and the week-by-week picture of the first month.
- Candidacy Self-Check. An educational checklist of the signs that suggest Ortho-K may or may not fit. It is not a diagnosis and it does not replace an evaluation.
- Childhood Myopia Management. The clinical view of why a rising prescription matters beyond the inconvenience.
- Pediatric Ortho-K. How the program is structured specifically for children.
Comparing Ortho-K With the Alternatives
Comparison pages on practice websites usually exist to make the practice look good. These are written to help you pick correctly, which sometimes means picking something we do not provide. Each one names the patient who should choose the other option.
- Ortho-K vs LASIK. Reversible and available to children, versus permanent, adults only, and done once. There are patients for whom LASIK is the better answer, and the page says so.
- Ortho-K vs Soft Contacts. Nightly wear with unencumbered days, versus daytime wear with dryness, handling, and a recurring supply cost.
- Ortho-K vs Atropine. Optical myopia control that also corrects vision, versus low-dose drops that slow progression but leave the child still needing glasses. Combination therapy is covered too.
If you want the surgical comparison from the candidacy angle rather than the treatment angle, see Ortho-K as a LASIK Alternative.
Living With the Lenses
Ortho-K is a habit before it is a treatment. The clinical result depends almost entirely on two things you control at home: consistent nightly wear and disciplined hygiene. These pages cover both without euphemism.
- Lens Care and Hygiene. The morning and evening routine step by step, the rules that are not negotiable, why tap water is the single most dangerous shortcut, travel logistics, and replacement intervals.
- Adaptation Guides. What the first night feels like, what the first week looks like, what is normal, and the specific symptoms that mean you stop wearing the lenses and call us.
- First Night Adaptation. The clinical version of the same story, set inside the treatment timeline.
- Insertion and Removal Training. How we teach handling and why we do not send lenses home until it is independent.
Reference and Background
Use these when you hit a term you do not recognize or a question this site has not answered yet.
- Ortho-K FAQ. More than twenty questions grouped by basics, safety, children, process, cost, daily life, and candidacy.
- Ortho-K Glossary. Every term you will hear at a fitting appointment, defined in one or two sentences.
- Blog. Longer pieces on mechanism, myopia research, and patient experience.
- Clinical Evidence. What the published studies do and do not show.
How These Resources Are Written
Who writes and reviews the content on this site?
Every clinical page here is reviewed by Dr. Mark Page, the orthokeratologist who fits these lenses daily at Better Sight Overnight. Pages carry a review date so you can see how current they are. Where the evidence is mixed or a result is not guaranteed, the page says so rather than rounding up.
- No promises of 20/20. Most patients reach functional distance vision without correction. Some retain a small residual prescription. Results vary with prescription, corneal shape, and consistency of wear.
- Candidacy limits are stated up front. High prescriptions, significant irregular astigmatism, severe dry eye, and certain corneal conditions can rule Ortho-K out.
- Pricing is published, not hidden. A complete program starts at $1,800 and a consultation starts at $250, credited toward your program. Your exact figure comes in writing before you commit.
- Educational, not diagnostic. Nothing here is medical advice for your eyes specifically. A corneal examination answers questions a website cannot.
When you are ready, request a consultation or read what to expect at the first visit.