Rigid Gas Permeable Contact Lenses

Rigid gas permeable (RGP) contact lense sare made with stiff silicone polymers that allow oxygen to pass through to the cornea, giving them their name. If you would like to know if you are a candidate for rigid lenses, make an appointment with one of our practitioners.

See this page for more information on RGP lens care.

Conditions such as myopia, astigmatism, aphakia, keratoconus, and irregular corneas benefit from RGP lenses.1,2 This is because they hold their shape and provide an even front optical surface for the eye, unlike soft contact lenses. RGP lens wearers experience clear, high-quality vision with a higher safety profile than any other contact lens.3 RGPs are more durable and last longer than soft contact lenses, often being worn for over a year before they require replacement.

At Innovative Eye Care we use a customised lens design program called EyeSpace to accurately design the fit and power of your lens unique to your eye. Our Adelaide and Henley Beach practices are equipped with a multitude of state-of-the-art equipment including corneal topography, corneal tomography and wavefront aberrometry. This allows our optometrists to custom design RGP lenses for our patients that can improve vision for wearers with a range of eye conditions.

Rigid lenses may take a little longer to adapt to before they are as comfortable as soft contact lenses. For advice on rigid contact lenses and solutions, please consult our team.

Certain types of rigid lenses can be worn overnight, changing the shape of the cornea while you sleep and eliminating the need to wear spectacles or contact lenses during the day (see our orthokeratology page).

References

1) Jupiter DG, Katz HR. (2000): “Management of irregular astigmatism with rigid gas permeable contact lenses”. CLAO Journal;26(1): 14-17.

2) Chaudhary M, Kandel H, Adhikari P. (2017):“Visual outcome in Keratoconus with spherical rigid gas permeable contactlens”. Journal of Institute of Medicine: 39(3).

3) Cheng KH, Leung SL et al. (1999): Incidenceof contact-lens-associated microbial keratitis and its related morbidity.Lancet354: 181-185.