For the past 5 years I have been wearing soft, spherical contact
lenses. I found comfort and longevity with Ocular Science's Zero 6 and
Biomedics lenses. During that time I tried at least two other brands
that were significantly less comfortable. Before that I wore RGP
lenses with correction for astigmatism in one eye.

By mid-January of this year my astigmatism was bad enough (-1.75,
-2.0) that my doctor put me in toric lenses. Unfortunately since then
I have not been able to find a soft toric lens that is both
comfortable and remains in good focus. I have been to 4 different
doctors since January. The doctors are all reluctant to try lenses
other than about two preferred brands, and none are very interested in
finding alternatives. Instead they prefer to keep making minor changes
to lenses that I know are not as comfortable as they could be. I often
hear "you need to wear the lenses awhile to get used to them."

I have tried the following toric lenses: Focus, InFocus, B&L in both
8.6 and 8.3 base curve and 3 different prescriptions. The B&L are
closest to working, as they remain most consistently in-focus, but
don't achieve the comfort and longevity that I got from the Ocular
Science's lenses. Ocular Sciences makes one toric lens, but my doctors
so far are reluctant to fit it and encourage me to try other brands.

I live in southwest {*filter*}ia but am willing to travel if a doctor
exists that keeps many lenses in stock and is willing to let me try
several at one time. I am not concerned about cost, as this is my
vision! I have worn comfortable lenses before so I am certain that a
comfortable toric lens exists out there somewhere!

Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated!

Tad

I have tried several brands, and have been the most happy with the
SunSoft Torics that I'm wearing now.  They are a little larger diameter
than most lenses, so they are more visible (since they cover a mm or so
of my sclera around the periphery of my cornea).  However, I find them
to be exceptionally comfortable, and I get excellent vision with them.
One nice thing I found is that most toric lenses come with the cylinder
axis in 5 degree increments or so, while the SunSoft lenses are made to
the exact axis prescribed.  So after wearing Focus Torics for several
years, it was quite a revelation to put on the SunSoft lenses and get
better vision than with my glasses!

Cheers!
--

http://www.microsoft.com/directx/resources/faq.htm#uninstall
Q. How do I uninstall DirectX 5?
A. " ... The only way to remove the run time is to
    reformat your hard drive. ..."

Most toric lenses are weighted by putting prism in the lens, so that the
bottom of the lens is thicker than the top.  This also makes the less
comfortable, at least initially.  I've had lots of luck with several
different lenses -- Focus Torics, Preference Torics, and Sunsoft Torics
are all frequent replacement (2-3 month) lenses.  Custom toric lenses are
also available: Hydrocurve, Eyecon, etc.  You just need to find an
optometrist who is comfortable fitting them.  If you want to travel to
Alaska to have me fit you, please do!  You can make a vacation of it !
Otherwise, I would try to find someone who specializes in contact lenses.

Good Luck,

Dr. Jim Falconer, Jr OD
Alaska Eye Care Centers
1345 W 9th Ave
Anchorage, AK 99515

On Wed, 28 Apr 1999 16:36:38 -0700, "James C. Falconer, Jr"

Yep!

Your best bet with this sort of sensitivity is to try either;

1.      Ciba Torisoft or
2.      Wesley Jessen/PBH Optifit toric (Made in D2 or D3 material)

Both of these lenses are manufactured with "profiled" edge and in the
cases I have had to deal with they have both proved effective.

Good Luck

Brad