All About Toric Contact Lenses


A new addition to the family of contact lens are toric contact lenses. These toric contact lenses correct astigmatism and are available as gas permeable or soft lenses. In soflens, toric lenses are available as either a monthly disposable contact lens or as an annual lens. Toric lenses are designed to stay in the same position whilst being worn. Toric lenses provide the same level of comfort and clarity of vision as other soft and gas permeable lenses.

Toric contact lenses are made from the same materials as regular ("spherical") contact lenses, so they can be either soft or RGP. The difference is in the design of the lens. Toric lenses come with two powers in them, created with curvatures at different angles (one for astigmatism, the other for either myopia or hyperopia). There is also a mechanism to keep the contact lens relatively stable on the eye when you blink or look around. To provide crisp vision, toric contact lenses do not rotate on your eye.

Toric lenses are to be cared for just like other contact lenses. Toric contact lens cleaning requires a good contact lens cleaner and a solution. This will help you to take care of contact lenses dry eyes. Properly fitting a toric lens takes more of your eye care practitioner's time and requires more expertise than regular contacts. Consequently, you can expect that a fitting for toric will be more expensive than a regular contact lens fitting. The lenses themselves also cost more than spherical lenses.

Many brands of soft toric lenses are available today, so you can choose the brand with the best characteristics for your particular eyes. Torics are available as frequent replacement, disposable and even daily disposable contact lenses. Torics are also available in many colors that either change or enhance your natural eye color. Some colors are available as disposable colored contact lense; but most colored torics are non-disposable, conventional contact lenses. Multifocal torics correct presbyopia. These are generally non-disposable as well. There are some soft toric multifocal brands, but often an RGP lens is prescribed in this case. However, there are also some contact lens problems with the toric lenses.