Getting the most pleasing appearance

**oxmoon** · 12-13-2010, 12:40 PM

Patients ask for the thinnest lenses you can give them for the money they have to spend, thinking thin is what will make them look the best. After they are made up and the patient puts them on, they may or may not be the best looking, especially for those with moderate to high cylinder. This is because of the cylinder lines that appear on the lenses. The lower the index, the thicker the lenses are, but in some respects, the better they look because these lines are minimized. The ultra hi index are thinner but the lines are more exaggerated.

A woman with a sphere of -2.00 and cyliner of -3.75 recently rejected her Physio 360 1.74 lenses because of these lines, even after commenting about how thin they were. Said the cylinder marks looked awful. There must be a name for these lines, but I don't know what it is. We remade them in Panamic 1.60 and she is happy because the lines do not show. (They really do show, but to see them you have to turn the lenses upside down)

Have any of you encountered this before? How do you take it into consideration when suggesting the most cosmetically pleasing while also trying to avoid remakes?

Ox

**edKENdance** · 12-13-2010, 01:10 PM

ok, I'll be the first one to say it.

WHAT?

**oxmoon** · 12-13-2010, 01:19 PM

I think what is unclear is my reference to "cylinder lines". This is probably because I don't know the name for them. Taking a look at a cylindrical lense not head on but sideways reveals the ripples of the cylinder. A person wearing a moderate to high cylinder lense looks OK straight on, but not from an angle which reveals the cylinder ripples. The patient I referred to took off her glasses and looked at them, seeing the ripples. This is when she balked.

**uncut** · 12-13-2010, 01:49 PM

Was the first pair....edge polished, flatter base curve? Which "Brand"? Which raw material(index)?

BTW............................ Welcome to the Forum, oxmoon!

**bbnfwtx** · 12-13-2010, 01:49 PM

I'm looking at a 1.0-3.75, and I see what your talking about, I think its the edge of the lens reflecting off the front and back surface of the lens. Kinda like infinity mirrors from the '70's, where you could see a tunnel of light inside the mirror.

**oxmoon** · 12-13-2010, 02:01 PM

Originally Posted by uncut

Was the first pair....edge polished, flatter base curve? Which "Brand"? Which raw material(index)?

BTW............................ Welcome to the Forum, oxmoon!

Thanks. The old pair were Comfort 1.60, with polished edges. These actually looked better on her than the 1.74 because of the cylinder ripples even though they were alittle thicker. All cylinders have these ripples. Look at a drinking glass and you will see the same thing. It seems that best appearance is had with the lenses that minimize them the most. But how to get this across to patients??

**Wes** · 12-13-2010, 02:06 PM

Hmm. Are you referring to the power rings? High minus lenses have them as well

**uncut** · 12-13-2010, 02:12 PM

A point to remember........The higher the index of refraction, the more reflectant the raw material is.

A flattening of the base curve would also change the angle of reflectance.

Edging with a flatter bevel(edger) behind peak would also enhance the reflection. It's too bad the lenses were rejected for that reason, but the good thing is....visually a 1.6 might give better peripheral vision, anyway.

**oxmoon** · 12-13-2010, 02:24 PM

Yes, I'm sure that's it. Power rings. Great. Now I know the name. But what about the question of getting patients to consider this aspect along with thickness?

**oxmoon** · 12-13-2010, 02:27 PM

Why is it that the 1.6 will give better peripheral vision? It seems that the flattening of the BC increases the reflection of the power rings.

**uncut** · 12-13-2010, 02:32 PM

Originally Posted by oxmoon

Yes, I'm sure that's it. Power rings. Great. Now I know the name. But what about the question of getting patients to consider this aspect along with thickness?

Inform, inform, inform. Everything you do when deviating from the existing conditions the person is currently experiencing, will have advantages, and disadvantages. There will be improvements, and consequences of improvements!:)