Are you still searching for your reading glasses or fighting to find the area of best vision in your bifocal g lasses? A lthough everyone loses their natural reading ability in their forties, a dvanced technology gives us an opportunity to overcome this problem. Last year I wrote about the options for helping with near vision, one of them being multi-focal contact lenses. These lenses use a different method of focusing images than your natural eyes or glasses, and in most cases give you freedom to do near and distant tasks without wearing any glasses at all. Imagine working on your computer without having to bend your head back, or going to the store and not fumbling for your reading glasses to find the price on the tag.

There are many different multi-focal contact lens designs available, but my favorite design is found in a gas permeable lens (rigid lens). Many people started with hard contact lenses back in the 60’s and 70’s, and have never found the need to switch to soft lenses along the way. These new multi- focal gas permeable lenses feel and look the same as non multi-focal lenses, so switching to them are very easy. To explain how they work, think of a doughnut. The hole of the doughnut represents the area of the contact lens which corrects for distance vision, and the actual doughnut area corrects the vision for near objects. If the lens sits on the persons eye properly it will move up slightly when the person looks down to read, thus moving the lenses into the reading position. Again, if a person is already used to wearing a gas permeable contact lens, this is a very smooth transition to make and people love the convenience and good vision. Sure, we have multi- focal contact lenses that are made in a soft lens format. These lenses also work well, but it is difficult to fine tune the person’s vision if they have astigmatism.

Don’t worry if you are unsure that multi-focal contact lenses or contact lenses would work for you. During your eye exam, we will discuss the details of your situation, and provide the best solution for your needs. If you still are unsure after the exam, a free contact lens consultation will help you through the decision process. At this consultation, I have the person try on a pair of contact lenses with their corrective power to assess the feel and vision that they can get. You have nothing to lose, except those inconvenient glasses and that nagging problem when you try to read. Just call our office to set up your exam today.