wide pds

[harry a saake]

Within the last two years i have had a number of patients with unusually wide pd,s. Today i had the dubious honor of measuring the widest pd i ever saw, a man with an 84 pd. Strangely enough all of the ones with the extra wide pd,s have come from Africa. I wonder if any one else has experinced this, especially some of our opticans from the african nations and what do you use to fit them with. The man today was wearing a frame with a 70 pd and his eyes were out on the edges. We are now looking for a frame, as our only choice seems to be a three piece rimless made to pd. Jerry Huang, where are you when i need you.

[optigoddess]

Harry:

We had 2 patients with this physical situation last year!

The first man's wife didn't want to understand that SMALL frames NOT better! We ended up returning the sale because she was insistent on a certain look for him & we weren't able to satisfy her fashion sense with balanced, appropriate optics.

The second man, well, we spent some serious time looking for a frame & we came up with a great combination! (unfortunately, I don't recall his name to reference the file....) He was so thrilled to having a pair of glasses that looked good both physically & optically!

It seems to me, when I have seen this situation, it is "always" a higher minus situation & if you're not careful with frame selection, you'll produce eyewear that looks BACKWARDS (the thicker edge will be nasally - and with nosepads, that's not really good).

[Texas Ranger]

Harry, on a couple occasions, I have used the Luxottica CARLOS; it is available in a size range from a 52 eye to a 66 eye; 14 to 26 bridges; tpls from 130 to 175mm in gep, normal sizes are included, and normal sizes are available in other colors, check their catalog for more info. so, a frame is available with a 92mm frame pd, now the problem would be getting the lens big enough. they also have a zyl Garrett, available up to a 64-22, 170mm. hope this is helpful!

[harry a saake]

:D I probably should have mentioned this fellows rx is - 9.00 - 6.00 x 180 OU. Ranger are these frames with a large "b" measurement. I was thinking because of the - 15.00 power in the 90 meridian about using something rectangular with a short "b" measurement, and so far my only optiuon seems to be a rimless three piece mounting made to pd.

[Texas Ranger]

Harry, the frame is about an 11 difference, the big size probably has an e.d. of 75, so you could measure the edge thickness in inches! ha ha,

[Joann Raytar]

From Visioncareproducts.com
Eyewear for Every Face: Accommodating your Ethnic Patients
http://www.visioncareproducts.com/06/eye_ethnic.html

[optigoddess]

Great article, Jo - thanks for posting that link!

[JERRY HUANG]

Hi Harry,

I deal with lots of similar situation all the time during the week days. Many patents try to get some frames FIT them the best whether frames are existed or not. There are situation such as: wide pd, narrow pd, extreme seg heights, right ear is about half an inch taller than left one, super small zyl frame with strap for 6-month-old infant........etc. That is why I always want to build special eyewears for both functional and cosmetic purposes. Yes, it is fun and very profitable. All opticans can learn how to build their own frames by learning:

1. Take photo picture of similar frame and another one for patient's face with digital camera----$60.
2. Scan the the picture.-------scanner---$99.
3. Cometic touch up by using Photoshop software and save under PCX file.-----cheap.
4. Import the photo image to CAD/CAM software and trace the entire frame. Smooth all curve lines first. The software also allows me to change eyesize, relocate the pd distance, increase or decrease the DBL and any modificatin on shapes. When I am done with correction, I will further apply frame colors. Print out on piece of paper. I will also save in PCX file again and export to Photoshop software to overlap the new design frame overlap on the picture with patient's face. First set up is free, $60 charge if patient request to change frame shape, frame pd.............Please check www.bobcad.com They offer the most affordable software at $499 vs $8,000 from others. Bobcad also allows me to transform my design to MC codes which is the engineer language to turn on the CNC machine to mill the shape according to design.
5. Secure frame material and mill by CNC machine----$8,00 table size CNC machine available from: www.sherline.com Milling cutters are available at $10 to $100 from: www.tommasin.com
6. file sharp edge and put the piece in tumbleing machine for 24 hours-------$300 from www.riogrande.com
7. Insert or weld hinges-----www.obe.de
8. polish and install the frame------$200 for polishing machine available at www.riogrande.com

That is pretty much for custom made frames. Of course, I alway have to watch little details from here and there. The frame material can be varied from Titanium, nickel silver, Gold, plastic, horn, wood.........I don't mind to charge my patient $700 for a piece of custom made plastic frame because there are so much labor and brain juice have involved besides he or she can not find one anyway.

I will ask my students to design one for you and post on this forum next week according to your description. Please feel free to request further necessary modifications. They are so proud to learn all the high end technology here in USA and make frames for their empolyers in Hong Kong or Japan. You see! Everything starts from America. www.westec.org

:cheers:

Jerry

[Darris Chambless]

Hey harry,

Do what I do. Take a realatively large (but not oversized) metal frame in a rectangular design and form it however you need it. Make sure you don't extend the frame pd past the patient pd so that they center up optically in the frame. This way you won't have to be as concerned about finding a lenses blank that will work in the frame. It's a custom job but you can usually do it with what you have in house.

Remember that the manufacturer bent the eyewire to suit their die so you can reform it to suit your needs ;)

Take care and holler if you need me to be more specific.

Darris C.

[Darryl Meister]

harry a saake said: Strangely enough all of the ones with the extra wide pd,s have come from Africa.

Hi Harry,

I actually assumed that your patient would be of African or African-American descent, since it has been my experience that they will have the widest PDs. This was one of the reasons that I suggested the use of adjustable nosepads in my ophthalmic optics post.

Best regards,
Darryl

[harry a saake]

:D Thanks for all the good advice, Darryl, what i needed to know is an atoric hi index going to be the best lens?

[Darryl Meister]

harry a saake said:
:D Thanks for all the good advice, Darryl, what i needed to know is an atoric hi index going to be the best lens?

To the best of my knowledge, no manufacturers offer an atoric design out to a -6.00 cyl. You're probably limited to a semi-finished aspheric or best form high-index lens.

Best regards,
Darryl

[Jedi]

Here is the old post on wide pds.

[OpticianLynn2000]

Texas Ranger..........

Can't tell how many Carlos' I've fit over the years! That frame is great! Of course they've all been "older guys".