Usually, people between the ages of 40 and 45 will start to see the effects of presbyopia. As we wrote about in a previous post, presbyopia is a natural process that makes it difficult to read small print because the lens inside the eye becomes less flexible. This flexibility is what allows the eye to change focus from objects that are far to objects that are close.

Your eye doctor can suggest a variety of options to correct presbyopia. Some common options to correct presbyopia include:

• Reading Glasses: Patients can use these for reading, computer use, and other activities that require close vision.
• Bifocal, Trifocal or Progressive Glasses: These are worn for seeing at all distances. However, since the reading portion is in the lower part of the lenses, seeing up close in a straight ahead gaze is difficult. Since people typically use computers with the screen directly in front of them, this is not an ideal situation. Another issue is that the reading area and field of view of these eyeglasses is relatively small. This requires patients to move their head in order to see wider areas like a computer screen or newspaper.
• Monovision Contact Lenses: One way to wear contact lenses for presbyopia is to wear one lens for reading in one eye and one lens in the opposite eye for seeing in the distance (or just one lens in one eye for reading - if no distance prescription is necessary). This is called monovision. The problem with monovision is that you are only seeing with one eye at either distance or near and your vision in between them may be blurred. You also lose depth perception and the vision is never as clear as when both eyes are seeing at the same distance.
• Multifocal Contact Lenses: This is another option for people with presbyopia. Like progressive glasses, the vision is corrected for all distances. However with contact lenses, a person is always looking through the center of the lens. Both the distance and near corrections have to be in the center of the lens. This creates simultaneous vision where both near and distance images are created. It takes some time for patients to adjust because the brain has to learn to select the clearer image depending on what is being viewed. The advantage of multifocal contacts is that anywhere that you look, you are looking through the center of the lens. It is also a great option for patients who are active and want to look their best.

CooperVision offers a variety of multifocal contact lens choices. The latest offering is to ask your eye doctor about is a daily disposable multifocal contact lens called Proclear 1 day multifocal contact lenses. Make sure to ask your eye doctor about what option is best for you.

According to Contact Lens Spectrum, patients who suffer from presbyopia are projected to be the single largest group of potential contact lens wearers by 2018. With so many presbyopic patients flooding the market, fitting multifocal contact lenses is a smart way for eye care practitioners to grow their practices.

Presbyopic patients have not had too many options in the past when it came to contact lenses. As a result, contact lens usage drops among patients after the age of 45 which is when patients need vision correction because of presbyopia. The good news is that now, there are a lot of new multifocal contact lens options available. Is your practice ready to help fit these patients with new multifocal contact lenses?

Here are some tips to help you grow a successful multifocal practice:

• Focus on Your Patients: It helps when eye care practitioners ask patients what they need vision correction for. Does the patient need it for precision work? Does the patient need uncompromised distance vision? Are there lifestyle needs that the patient has where eyeglasses are not a great option? It is easier for eye care practitioners to decide which patients may be the best candidates for multifocal contact lenses once those questions are answered.
• Learn About Fitting For Presbyopes: Fitting prospective multifocal contact lens patients the first time can be challenging. Take advantage of contact lens manufacturers’ fitting tools in order to ensure that your patients are fit right the first time. CooperVision offers a fitting tool called the MultiTrak Calculator to help you calculate multifocal lens parameters directly from a spectacle prescription or an over-refraction, using lens-on-eye information. MultiTrack is available for your desktop computer and is a Web-based application, which gives you the added benefit of being able to order lenses directly from the application.
• Follow Up: Patients with presbyopia will need a follow up just to ensure that the vision correction is ideal for them. Following up with patients after a few days will allow eye care practitioners to adjust the prescription in necessary or even recommend a different modality based on the patient’s lifestyle needs. For example, patients who would like to wake up and see right away may benefit from extended wear contact lenses such as CooperVision’s Biofinity Multifocal contact lenses. If patients don’t want to deal with the hassle of contact lens maintenance, there is even a daily disposable multifocal contact lens option. CooperVision just introduced Proclear 1 day multifocal contact lenses. Whatever the need your presbyopic patient has, there are options.

Make sure to take advantage of the latest multifocal contact lens offerings and watch your multifocal practice thrive!

Are you interested in building your practice? Make sure to catch today’s second part of a webinar series called Your Practice In Focus.

This second webinar is Fitting Patients With Multifocal Daily Disposables. Daily disposable lenses have many advantages over other lens modalities. It is a segment of contact lenses that is growing rapidly. Another significant segment is the presbyopic population. According to a recent study, 25 percent more people globally are expected to become presbyopic by the year 2020. This is incredibly significant given that the pool of presbyopes is already estimated at more than one billion worldwide.

However, the choices for lenses that are both multifocal and daily disposable are very limited. Eye care practitioners have had to have patients choose between vision performance and convenience, but that is no longer the case. With CooperVision’s Proclear® 1 day multifocal contact lenses, eye care practitioners will have a high performance multifocal contact lens that is also a convenient daily disposable.

This webinar, hosted by CooperVision’s Senior Manager of Clinical Research, Paul Chamberlain, will provide an overview of Proclear 1 day multifocal contact lenses and the benefits of building your multifocal practice. Don’t miss out! Make sure to register for this exciting webinar here.

More than one billion people worldwide have a vision condition called presbyopia, which is a natural decrease in the ability of the lens in the eye to change its shape to focus on close objects. We’ve all seen others struggle with trying to read menus and newspapers. Maybe it has even happened to you.

CooperVision announced the launch of Proclear® 1 day multifocal daily disposable contact lenses for patients like you who are looking for a convenient, comfortable, and healthier lens to wear full time, occasionally, or to complement progressive eyeglasses or reading glasses.

“When it comes to your vision or the way you live your life, we don’t think anyone should have to compromise,” said Dennis Murphy, Executive Vice President, Global Sales and Marketing, CooperVision. “With Proclear® 1 day multifocal lenses, vision is clear near, far, and in-between, without the need for spectacles.”

Not only is it a high performance contact lens, it is comfortable too. Proclear® is the only lens material cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the claim that it: “May provide improved comfort for those who experience dryness or mild discomfort during lens wear.” This is especially important for patients who often find that age-related dryness is an issue and deterrent for wearing contact lenses. Proclear® also offers natural biocompatibility, meaning that the lenses are made to imitate the cells of the human eye.

It is convenient too. With daily disposable lenses, the cost and hassle of contact lens maintenance is eliminated. And because the lenses are replaced each day, they are one of the healthiest contact lens options available. Proclear® 1 day multifocal lenses provide patients with the freedom to maintain an active and social lifestyle, allowing the wearer to decide whether to wear the lenses all day, part of the day, or reserve them for special situations. Plus, as your prescription changes, your eye care practitioner can easily adjust it, which means minimal disturbance to your vision, shorter appointments, and fewer follow-ups.

The lens will be launched initially in the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and a number of European countries. Click here to learn more on the Proclear® 1 day multifocal.

Are you interested in building your practice? Make sure to register for the second webinar in a three part series called Your Practice in Focus. This webinar series is in partnership with ODWire.org and will focus on important topics and trends that will help eye care practitioners build their practices. Make sure to attend all three if you can!

The second webinar in the series is Fitting Patients with Multifocal Daily Disposables.

According to a recent study, 25 percent more people globally are expected to become presbyopic by the year 2020. This is incredibly significant given that the pool of presbyopes is already estimated at more than one billion worldwide.

Is your practice ready?

Many eye care practitioners find that multifocal contact lenses can be hard to fit, and that success with patients is not always a guarantee. And given the limited daily disposable options for presbyopes, it has been hard to build out a robust multifocal practice for some eye care practitioners.

CooperVision is offering this free webinar on fitting multifocal patients with Proclear® 1 day multifocal contact lenses on May 30, 2012 at 9:00 pm EST. The webinar will introduce a new, simple to fit, daily disposable multifocal lens that you can use to build out your multifocal practice.

CooperVision’s Senior Manager of Clinical Research, Paul Chamberlain, will go over the basics of this exciting new product and answer all of your questions about this new contact lens option for your multifocal patients. Make sure to register here for your chance to learn about this innovative new contact lens and expand your practice.

With as many advancements as there are with contact lenses, most eye care practitioners still wish their patients were fully compliant. Patients who are not compliant can put themselves at risk for conditions such as corneal infections.

How can eye care practitioners help improve patient compliance?

First, eye care practitioners should think about signs that patients may not be compliant. The Review of Optometry recommends that eye care practitioners ask patients the following questions in order to assess patient compliance:

• What contact lens solution do you use? This question allows eye care practitioners to gauge how often the patient is using their solution. If a patient can’t answer this question, then the patient may need more education about the importance of cleaning and storing contact lenses in solution.
• How often do you sleep in your lenses? Most patients have slept in their contact lenses from time to time. This question allows eye care practitioners to decide how often patients do this in order to recommend specific modalities. For example, a monthly contact lens with the capability of extended wear may be a good recommendation for patients who sleep in their lenses more often.
• Can you show me your contact lens case? If an eye care practitioner can see the condition of the wearer’s case, it will give the eye care practitioner an idea about typical routine of the patient. If a contact lens case is dirty or in poor condition, then the eye care practitioner may want to spend more time discussing compliance with the patient.
• Can you show me your typical cleaning and removal routine? Asking patients to show how they care for their lenses on a daily basis can reveal a lot about compliance. For example, some eye care practitioners will find that some patients simply remove lenses without cleaning them and store them in old solution!

Just taking the time to ask patients some open ended questions can help guide eye care practitioners to give the right recommendations in order to ensure patient compliance. Make sure to visit the On Eye blog for our recommendations in order to ensure patients compliance coming soon!

Patients who may have had perfect vision all of their life will start to notice vision issues after the age of 40. This is a normal part of the aging process. Just like a patient’s body, a patient’s eyes will change after time. Aging changes in various parts of the eye can result in a number of noticeable differences in how well a patient can see.

One issue that affects older patients is presbyopia. As we wrote about in a previous blog post, presbyopia is a condition that affects patients over the age of 40. It’s a natural process that makes it difficult to read small print because the lens inside the eye becomes less flexible. This flexibility allows the eye to change focus from objects that are far to objects that are close. While it is a normal part of the aging process, it can be a cause of frustration for some patients. The good news is that there are a variety of different options to correct presbyopia. Some common options are bifocal glasses, reading glasses, or contact lenses. Here are some contact lens options for presbyopic patients:

• Proclear EP: For patients who are showing early signs of presbyopia, CooperVision has contact lenses called Proclear EP. Proclear EP is the first and only contact lens designed specifically for people who are just beginning to have trouble reading small type and seeing objects up close because of presbyopia.
• Proclear Multifocal: Proclear Multifocal contact lenses are the only lenses designed to address two common conditions experienced by those with aging eyes: presbyopia and eye dryness. In fact, only Proclear lenses are cleared by the FDA for the claim: "may provide improved comfort for contact lens wearers who experience mild discomfort or symptoms relating to dryness during lens wear."
• Proclear Multifocal Toric: Proclear Multifocal Toric contact lenses are the only monthly replacement lens designed to address both astigmatism and presbyopia. As we wrote about in a previous post, astigmatism is a common refractive error that causes vision to be out of focus because the cornea is abnormally curved. So for patients who have both astigmatism and presbyopia, there is an option!
• Biofinity Multifocal: CooperVision's Biofinity Multifocal is a high-performance, monthly silicone hydrogel lens for patients with presbyopia. It provides excellent vision at distance, intermediate and near with Balanced Progressive Technology multifocal contact lens design. Since these contact lenses are an extended wear option, an eyecare professional can recommend these contact lenses for patients who require overnight wear.
• Proclear 1 Day Multifocal: Coming soon, CooperVision’s Proclear 1 Day Multifocal contact lenses will be the newest offering for presbyopic patients. This is a great option for patients who want the convenience of a daily disposable contact lens but need vision correction for presbyopia. Look for it in early summer!

CooperVision held a webinar on making daily disposables a significant part of your practice on March 21. Did you miss it? Don’t worry; you can always access it in the OD Wire archive.

Daily disposable lenses have many advantages over other lens modalities. Whether its ocular health, convenience, or compliance, there are a variety of reasons that eye care professionals should consider making 1 Days a significant part of their practice. Are you ready to make "1 Days" a major part of your contact lens practice? This webinar, hosted by Dr. Kerry Gelb, offers concrete and practical advice on how to boost 1-Day usage in order to make this modality a large portion of your contact lens practice.

Specifically, Dr. Gelb discusses:

• Advantages of 1 Days for Patients
• Patient Compliance with 1 Days vs. Other Modalities
• Overcoming a Patient's Financial Concerns with 1 Days
• Trends in Market Share & Growth and How to Leverage These in your Eye Care Practice
• A Discussion of the Greater Acceptance of the 1 Day Modality

Dr. Kerry Gelb graduated with honors from the Illinois College of Optometry and completed a one-year residency in the Diagnosis and Management of Ocular disease. He has been practicing in Woodbridge, NJ for the past 22 years. Dr. Gelb has been interviewed on both radio and television on topics related to ocular health. He frequently lectures on the topic of building a "One Day" contact lens practice, and has extensive knowledge and experience in the evaluation and fitting of specialty or "hard to fit" contact lenses.

You can access the Daily Disposables In Your Practice webinar here if you missed it the first time around!

As an eye care professional, ensuring that your patient is comfortable and fitted correctly in a contact lens is essential. One of the main reasons that patients stop wearing contact lenses is because of discomfort. Eye care professionals can prevent contact lens dropout in their practices by maintaining patient comfort and fit.

However, there are patients that may be hard to fit. Finding the perfect fit with multifocal and toric contact lenses can take more time than with traditional spherical contact lenses. Fortunately, CooperVision offers a variety of tips and tools for eye care professionals , especially for hard to fit contact lens patients. Make sure to take advantage of our free fitting tips, tools, and resources in order to maximize fitting effectiveness and your practice’s efficiency:

• Lens Locator: helps eye care professionals locate CooperVision lenses by prescription, schedule, or modality.
• ToriTrak Calculator: helps eye care professionals use the most accurate method of fitting our toric contact lenses and is designed to eliminate errors in estimating lens rotation.
• MultiTrak Calculator: eye care professionals can calculate multifocal lens parameters directly from a spectacle prescription or an over-refraction, using lens-on-eye information.

  CooperVision also offers additional resources like fitting consultants. Sign up for a My CooperVision account for exclusive access to all of these tools for your practice. Make sure to follow us @CooperVision on Twitter and like us on our Facebook ECP Timeline for the most current content on ways to help build your practice.

For eye care professionals, fitting contact lenses for patients with astigmatism can be challenging. However, the challenges can be worth the effort for some patients. Select astigmatic patients may benefit from contact lenses that can offer better vision than eyeglasses. Contact lenses may provide clearer vision and a wider field of view than eye glasses.

Soft contact lenses conform to the shape of the eye; which means that standard soft lenses may not seem effective in correcting astigmatism. But special toric soft contact lenses are available to provide a correction for many types of astigmatism. In fact, even patients who have low astigmatism (0.75DC to 1.00DC) benefit visually when fitted with toric soft lenses instead of with spherical soft lenses. A recent study reported that up to 30% of astigmatic patients reported that they had not tried toric soft lenses because their eye care practitioner did not recommend them. One reason why eye care practitioners shy away from prescribing toric lenses for low astigmatic patients is because they believe that patients can tolerate a constant slight blur from a spherical lens better than a sporadic blur from a rotationally unstable toric lens. So how do eye care professionals ensure the best fit for toric lenses on their astigmatic patients?

The key is that eye care practitioners are consistent with their fits. CooperVision offers eye care practitioner tools such as a ToriTrak Calculator , which can help eye care practitioners fit their astigmatic patients. It is the most accurate method of fitting our toric contact lenses and is designed to eliminate errors in estimating lens rotation. Make sure to register for other fitting tools here and to follow us on Twitter @CooperVision for more information.