Specialty Contact Lenses: Hybrid Lenses

[@ezraarrambide-webb6807]

I am a new contact lens technician. Former optician. This video helps so much.

[@seanlikestoeat]

Thanks for the informative video! I have had little luck with soft toric lenses, and when I tried RGPs the vision was spectacular but I could not get used to how much they moved on my eye everytime I blinked (even after multiple fittings). I may have to look more into these hybrid lenses as they might just be the ideal middle ground.

[@johnpuccetti6019]

Great video! I had a cornea transplant I want to try these!

[@drnataliechai5551]

Thank you! Oh boy. I hope the surgery outcome was favourable for you! These are a very creative design and would be a great thing to consider for your situation. Good luck!

[@gissellesainz7704]

I can't wait for my hybrid lenses to arrive!! Thank you so much for your videos.

[@drnataliechai5551]

That is exciting! You are problem and thank you for your support in watching them!

[@angelachristine13]

Your video has been the most informative video out there on hybrids

[@deborahilo6792]

Another enlightening video. Love it!

[@alifahmed9309]

Very informative video Dr. Chai! I have high myopia (-10.00). What is your preference between hybrid and scleral lens for me? I am primarily looking for comfort, sharp vision, and stability. I have tried corneal RGP lens, but found them to be very uncomfortable. They also tend to move a lot every time I blinked, which I found quite annoying.

[@lisatoms7777]

Do the hybrid lens move on the cornia when you blink like the hard lens

[@alifahmed9309]

@@lisatoms7777 I haven't tried hybrid, so can't tell about that. But I have tried scleral lens recently, and they do not move on cornea and is quite comfortable.

[@yusufqcqnz]

Great video. Very detailed and liked the captions. Doctor i have Keratoconus and high astigmatism -7.75. Are contacts safe, if I sleep on train or bus for few minutes can that harm my vision, I would take them off before sleeping at night. I wish my Keratoconus can go away 😪

[@drnataliechai5551]

Thank you again! I greatly appreciate you taking the time to watch. As I mentioned in my previous reply, short term for a few minutes is generally no problem. Is your keratoconus in one eye only? Or is it in both eyes but slightly asymmetric in the disease process?

[@yusufqcqnz]

@@drnataliechai5551 i literally was googling to see if and hoping your practices was in New York, and I saw Canada. That's something I will definitely ask my doctor next week and in 2018 the eye doctor told me one eye had more keratoconus than the other eye, and one's vision was better, he said my astigmatism was bad, but he said the only thing they have (2018) was cross linking and if it got so bad which he didn't see happening, he said that some patients have a corneal transplant, when I heard that I literally wanted to cry, I thought I was going blind. I remember him saying the keratoconus isn't bad in one eye which is more dominant. My friend who knows a eye doctor told me dont get soft contacts , based on her seeing my eye prescription, I hope RGP contacts won't be so expensive or if they are i hope they can last more than a year?. Thank you for your support and advice Doctor. I love your videos.

[@nelbys437]

Your ok on sleep for a few minutes I actually take 30 min naps

[@savankumar611]

How to iris coloboma with lens such that it can not detect by torch examination???

[@yusufqcqnz]

Great video Dr. Chai. What is your opinion about Kerasoft contacts that are for keratoconus. I've been researching and wanted to know do patients with RGP lenses feel any discomfort. Thanks for your video on Hybrid lenses.

[@drnataliechai5551]

Fantastic question - I don't have too much experience with the Kerasoft contacts but took a quick look at them. On first impression, I think it's certainly a great option to RGP lenses. It seems their goal is to help with comfort because it is true that RGP lenses initially can be quite uncomfortable. HOWEVER, if you're able to "power through" the constant sensation of having an eyelash in the eye for about one week, they are very comfortable and you won't notice the difference. To answer your question for a previous comment, you had asked how long an RGP lens could last, and the lifetime of a pair can be 2-5 years with good hygiene and care. The up-front capital cost will seem daunting especially when compared to commercial soft lenses but remember, these lenses will last 2-5 years. So long-term it is actually sometimes more cost efficient. Personally for my patients, I usually would choose a scleral lens with my keratoconus patients - these lenses completely vault over the "cone" of the cornea for better comfort. I hope that answers your question? Let me know how your appointment goes!

[@yusufqcqnz]

@@drnataliechai5551 hi Dr. Chai. So sorry for the late reply. So I went to the appointment 12/16/20, I saw a optometrist dr. Roy cohen, he runs a bunch of tests on me, many machines and then examines my eyes, he tells me that he wants to make sure I have Keratoconus and then called Dr. Jimmy hu who is an ophthalmologist and has me go several blocks away and I mean the way Dr. Hu examined me was with a pentacan machine which confirmed I had Keratoconus as my ophthalmologist In past have confirmed, I was hoping it would just leave as the optometrist kinda gave me hope, but he wanted to make sure before fitting me for contacts. Dr. Hu then took a object and really started looking at my eye, he had me look at his shoulder and he was checking to see the inside of my eyes, the most through exam i think I ever got. Anyhow my eyes sting, he told me to use systane drops which I'm using like 3 to 4 times a day,he says my left eye Keratoconus is worse then my right eye, he has me read stuff with each eye closed and then looks at results from pentacan. He tells me that he wants to do crosslinking and his senior surgeon will perform it January 20 . He said after that he would then fit me for contacts once I heal. I call Dr cohen he tells me that contacts would be after my procedure. The contacts thankfully I found about an insurance called eyemed and they are super cheap $200 annual cost and they cover medical necessary contacts and everything the co pays for exams are $10. I don't know why Dr. My eye is stinging after he put that object. He said it would go away, and I do feel better day by day. It was I think a lenses and he inspected my inside of corneas or retina. It was yellow bright light. He told me DO Not rub your eyes as I have a bad habit of rubbing my bad left eye. I'm scared Dr. Chai. I don't know if I should do the procedure. Can you advise me. I'm conducting my research and these medical drops are coming but not approved fully yet and only i thinks a eye doctor can put them. They are called IV med 80 but I don't know if they truly cure keratoconus. The doctor said the crosslinking would stop the progression of keratoconus. I would love to hear your reply. You truly care about your patients I can tell. Thanks for always replying to me. Be well dr. Safe and wishing you all the best. iveenamed.com/news

[@drnataliechai5551]

@@yusufqcqnz Hi there! Thanks for such a detailed account of your appointments - it certainly helps me understand and be better able to guide you. Let me assure you that it sounds like you are in fantastic hands - I agree entirely with their treatment plan for you. Cross-linking is done here in Canada quite often for the keratoconic patients and has been shown to be quite effective. And the combination of cross-linking first then fitting you with the specialty contact lenses is sound advice. My patients I send for keratoconus consults to the local ophthalmologists here in my city that have underwent crosslinking have done very well. They come back to me for the specialty contact lens fit and let me tell you, as the fitter and designer of the lens, it makes the fit experience more enjoyable for you! That’s interesting - I’m still trying to figure out what it was that made your eyes burn. But I’m glad it’s getting better. My recommendation is to switch to a preservative free formulation of the Systane drops - the simple move towards that can help the recovery. At least with my own experience and similar with my patients, a lot of people have an over sensitivity to the preservatives and can maybe inhibit the recovery. Perhaps give that a try? I hope that gives you some insight! Stay safe and healthy and enjoy the holidays :) as usual, please let me know if you have any further questions!

[@yusufqcqnz]

@@drnataliechai5551 thank you Doctor chai. I wish my eyes weren't so dry and there was a magic pill for them. Thankfully the burning went away, I purchased a coconut hair treatment to prevent balding as I started seeing thinking, the day before the eye doctor appointment. I notice if that gets into my eye by me touching hair and eye, I think thats what led to it burning. How long doctor does it take for one to learn how to use lenses and would you recommend I get my cross linking prior to lenses. The doctor said my prescription could change after the cross linking?. Happy New year and all the best in everything. I love your videos. Keep uploading. I will try the simple version of systane drops.

[@drnataliechai5551]

@@yusufqcqnz Hi there - sorry for the late response! "Unplugged" a bit from technology over the holidays but now I'm back. I hope you had a restful holiday season as well. To answer your question, the general procedure is that the doctor will most likely have you in office for what we call a "specialty lens/contact lens fitting" - this is where we determine the best fit of the contact lens and fine tune other parameters for best vision. When the lenses arrive to the office after manufacturing, the office will call you back in for a "training" - I typically schedule about 1-2 hours. I usually insert the lenses first to assess the fit and allow it to settle for 30 minutes. After the training for you to insert/remove will be done. Sometimes it does take another visit but don't worry! That is totally normal. And yes, your doctor is correct, the prescription and shape of your cornea will be different after crosslinking. Crosslinking seems to be very beneficial and seems to do well with maintaining the integrity of the tissues longer in a lot of patients. If it was recommended for you by the surgeon, then yes! Do the crosslinking procedure and after healing and you get the "green light" from the surgeon, the lenses will be the last step to ensure best possible vision for best quality of life for you! Thank you for the support and I'm very glad you're taking value from my videos!

[@spiderdoom]

Looks like you still prefer minus lens glasses...

[@gissellesainz7704]

Do hybrid lenses have to be inserted in a certain orientation like toric lenses (with the tick marks at 12 and 6 o'clock)? Or can they be inserted without considering axis?

[@drnataliechai5551]

Hi there - thank you for your question! The design of a specialty CL is different from a toric soft lens with scribe markings. Depending on the company your doctor works with, there are some that have something called "toric markers" which help us make adjustments to the lens for the best vision and fit for the patient. But from the patient's perspective, when applying a well fitted hybrid lens, you do not need to consciously position the lens in a particular manner. You can simply take it out from the case, prepare your lens and insert

[@gissellesainz7704]

My doctor told me hybrids can potentially slow down the progression of myopia. Is this true??

[@drnataliechai5551]

I do not recall anything in my own readings about hybrids contributing to that, however I would not be surprised if it had a factor. I would imagine it is due to the optics and design of the lenses that may influence the way light enters and lands on the back of the eye - this could decrease the biochemical feedback for the eye to grow. If there is a paper on it that your doctor would be open to sharing with me, that would be awesome!

[@eunicious]

hi. i have dry eyes from prolonged soft contact lens wear for decades. now mostly wearing glasses. are there no options for me? tried scleral lenses. didn’t really help. is it worthwhile to try RGPs? hybrids?? and i also have mild presbyopia! to complicate things… what would you recommend? thanks!!

[@cakepudding3220]

I don’t know where to get these in the UK. ALL UK opticians don’t mention hybrid 😭

[@cheryll5496]

You're going to have to look for a contact lens specialist. My optometrist sent me to one, but I've seen another advertising since. I'm not in the UK but if they're in Melbourne they'll be in London at the least.

[@leonardearle5833]

Thank you for the great info. Please cut out the annoying music.

[@JBeck2468]

It’s crazy how those Synergies hybrid lenses are almost 20 years old and still soooo expensive.

[@kleverAgudoMUSICai]

hi how much do they go for. thank you

[@katydid5088]

@@kleverAgudoMUSICai Anywhere from $650 dollars a pair or more per lenses. The cost needs to be doubled as well as each lenses is only good for 6 months. The lenses must also be fit at an appointment (meaning a fee of anywhere from $30 to $100 dollars per visit. With insurance, the co-pay may be the only fee a patient pays but any excess over the amount covered by insurance is the responsibility of the patient. It depends on if you have vision insurance and your clinics policy. As RGP lenses aren't very common in some regions of the U.S anymore, sometimes they have a floating optometrist who has to be scheduled to come in. The doctor is essentially a fitting specialists brought in by the local clinic working for a fee alongside their base rate of pay.) Most insurances have a yearly contact allowance of $150 dollars sometimes in conjuncture with an eyewear budget, i.e a pair of frames with the lowest possible cost glasses available for your prescription. So anyone with -4 diopters of myopia is essentially getting nothing but either contacts or glasses from their insurance plans. For reference, glasses beyond -4 diopters of myopia either require mid to high level index lenses, a special type of plastic composite which helps in significantly reducing visual aberrations, weight, and overall comfort as the high index materials are typically more scratch resistant and include anti-glare and UV protection as an added bonus.

[@cheryll5496]

@@kleverAgudoMUSICai My single lens was $300 but with the initial consult and testing fees $600 all up. I did get an estimate of 2 to 3 years of wear though. That's before any health fund or Australian medicare rebates, which will drop it a bit.

[@blinkxzzz3737]

but you also ruined those Tom Fords that aint you boo!

[@danielball17]

Do you have anything else to do?